Introduction to Cryptography
Spring 2024
Course Information
Discipline Sheet: FLT_IC_RO, FLT_IC_EN
Course Goal: Introduction to Cryptography (IC) is a course for undergraduate students whose aim is to present elements of modern cryptography emphasizing the understanding of some fundamental concepts and structures such as perfect security, pseudo-randomness, provable security, etc.
Students interested in deepening IC for a career focused on cryptography or related areas can contact me directly. Our department offers a master’s program, Information Security, whose director is the instructor of this course. There is also the possibility of pursuing doctoral studies in cryptography and information security (please see the Students section on this site).
Prerequisites: Probability theory, algebra, number theory, and computational complexity as studied in the first year.
Textbook: The course is based on:
- J. Katz, Y. Lindell: Introduction to Modern Cryptography, Chapman and Hall/CRC, 3rd edition (December 21, 2020), 628 pages;
- Research articles freely accessible from the Internet (indicated in the references section of lessons).
Lectures, office hours, and exam sessions:
- Teaching weeks: Feb 26 – May 5 and May 13 – June 9, 2024;
- Partial evaluation week: April 15 – 21, 2024;
- Lectures: Thursday, 10:00 – 12:00, in C112;
- Office hours: Thursday, 14:00 – 15:00, in C301;
- Examination session: June 10 – 30, 2024;
- Re-examination session: July 1 – 7, 2024.
Grading:
- The final grade is based on the scores obtained in the ongoing evaluation and the final exam.
- The ongoing evaluation is based on exercises performed in class and assessment of implementations (50%), and two written tests (25% each) in the 8th and 14th weeks of didactic activity. Details about the basic principles and the grading method for ongoing evaluation are given during the first seminar. The ongoing evaluation score is measured on a scale from 0 to 100;
- The final exam takes place in the examination session. The final exam score is measured on a scale from 0 to 100;
- To pass the course, students must get at least 45 points at the ongoing evaluation and the final exam. If this requirement is met, the final score is computed as the average of the two scores. The final grade is then obtained by converting the final score (division by 10 and usual rounding).
Course Staff
Course Holder and Instructor: Prof.dr. Ferucio Laurențiu ȚIPLEA, Department of Computer Science, “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iași, Romania, e-mail: ferucio dot tiplea at uaic dot ro or fltiplea at gmail dot com.
Seminar assistant: Lect.dr. Sorin Iftene.