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Giants Among Us

The Diffie-Hellman Key Exchange, the first practical method for establishing a shared secret over an unprotected communications channel, was co-invented in 1976 by Whitfield Diffie and Martin Hellman. Two years later, in 1978, the RSA algorithm was publicly described by Ron Rivest, Adi Shamir and Leonard Adleman at MIT – the first algorithm known to be suitable for signing as well as encryption, and was one of the first great advances in public key cryptography. Its impact has guided and shaped the world of information security for the past 30+ years.

The Adventures of Alice & Bob

Rivest used fictitious placeholder names to explain the RSA encryption method and the many steps involved in the complex system. Alice & Bob were born to make the subject matter easier to grasp – replacing Person A and Person B. Bruce Schneier, author of Applied Cryptography and another forefather of information security, introduced a host of other characters to make technical topics more understandable. This cast of friends and enemies – including Eve the Eavesdropper, Mallory the Malicious Attacker and Walter the Warden, among others – populate Alice & Bob's universe and evolved into common parlance in cryptography and computer security.

Join us in London as we honor the giants of cryptography and computer security, spotlight the history and legacy of the RSA algorithm and focus on the future of our industry (and the ongoing Adventures of Alice & Bob).

Hear from some of the true giants of the information security industry:

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Thank you for attending RSA Conference Europe 2011.

Be sure to check out Conference highlights and photos. Mark your calendars for RSA Conference Europe 2012 taking place 9th to 11th October in London. We look forward to seeing you next year!

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