From: frantz@netcom.com (Bill Frantz)
Date: Thu, 25 Apr 1996 13:54:36 -0700 (PDT)
To: perry@piermont.com
Subject: Re: Golden Key Campaign
Message-ID: <199604252054.NAA03146@netcom9.netcom.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


At  3:27 PM 4/25/96 -0400, Perry E. Metzger wrote:
>Bill Frantz writes:
>> I will add to Bill's list:
>> 
>> 7) RSA is the best known and vetted of the Public Key algorithms.
>
>Nota at all, Mr. Frantz. There are no proofs of security associated
>with RSA. Rabin has excellent proofs that breaking a message is
>strictly equivalent to factoring.

I do not equate good vetting with proofs of security.  Given the Verona
intercepts, I don't think there are any valid proofs of the security of
complete crypto-systems.  While anyone who can factor RSA keys can break
RSA, factoring has been intensively studied since RSA was published.  The
public information says that in spite of improvements, factoring is still a
hard problem.  If people in Maryland can factor big RSA keys, they're Not
Saying Anything.

So far, I'll stand by my two contentions:

7a) RSA is the best known public key algorithm.
7b) RSA is the best vetted public key algorithm.

Do you have any counter examples to help me change my mind?


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