Linear Cryptanalysis

Applications of cryptography are plenty in everyday life. This guidebook is about the security analysis or 'cryptanalysis' of the basic building blocks on which these applications rely. Rather than covering a variety of techniques at an introductory level, this book provides a comprehensive and in-depth treatment of linear cryptanalysis. The subject is introduced from a mathematical point of view, providing an overview of the most influential papers on linear cryptanalysis and placing them in a consistent framework based on linear algebra. A large number of examples and exercises are included, drawing upon practice as well as theory. The book is accessible to students with no prior knowledge of cryptography. It covers linear cryptanalysis starting from the basics, including linear approximations and trails, correlation matrices, automatic search, key-recovery techniques, up to advanced topics, such as multiple and multidimensional linear cryptanalysis, zero-correlation approximations, and the geometric approach.

Tim Beyne is a postdoctoral researcher at KU Leuven, Belgium. He completed his dissertation in 2023 under the supervision of Vincent Rijmen. He is currently a junior postdoctoral fellow of the FWO, Belgium. His research has been recognized with awards at Asiacrypt 2018, Crypto 2021, and Asiacrypt 2021, and with the 2024 Nokia Bell Scientific Award.

Vincent Rijmen has been a professor at KU Leuven, Belgium since 2007 and Adjunct Professor with the University of Bergen, Norway since 2019. He is co-designer of the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES). He obtained his PhD on the design and cryptanalysis of block ciphers in 1997 and has been publishing articles at international cryptology conferences since 1993.