Module overview
Linked modules
Pre-requisites: (ELEC1201 and MATH2047) OR (COMP1202 AND COMP2210) OR ELEC6259
Aims and Objectives
Learning Outcomes
Knowledge and Understanding
Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
- The broad categories of codes and ciphers, and appropriate uses for each
- The historic struggle between code-makers and code-breakers
Subject Specific Practical Skills
Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:
- Attack classical ciphers such as Vigenère, and LFSR-based stream ciphers
- Select appropriate ciphers, cipher modes, and protocols for simple applications
Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills
Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:
- Perform simple mathematics appropriate to public-key encryption, and to cryptosystems based on polynomials over the binary numbers
Transferable and Generic Skills
Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:
- Use graduate-level literature to investigate areas of mathematics previously unfamiliar to you
Syllabus
Learning and Teaching
Type | Hours |
---|---|
Follow-up work | 18 |
Preparation for scheduled sessions | 18 |
Wider reading or practice | 50 |
Revision | 10 |
Completion of assessment task | 12 |
Tutorial | 6 |
Lecture | 36 |
Total study time | 150 |
Resources & Reading list
Textbooks
David Kahn (1997). The Codebreakers: The Comprehensive History of Secret Communication from Ancient Times to the Internet. Sphere books.
Bruce Schneier (1995). Applied Cryptography: Protocols, Algorithms and Source Code in C. Wiley.
Assessment
Summative
This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.
Method | Percentage contribution |
---|---|
Examination | 80% |
Cryptanalysis Investigation | 20% |
Referral
This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.
Method | Percentage contribution |
---|---|
Examination | 100% |
Repeat
An internal repeat is where you take all of your modules again, including any you passed. An external repeat is where you only re-take the modules you failed.
Method | Percentage contribution |
---|---|
Examination | 100% |
Repeat Information
Repeat type: Internal & External