Jean-Philippe Aumasson

Jean-Philippe Aumasson is a renowned cryptographer, software engineer, and security researcher from Switzerland. He is known for his research and innovation in cryptography, and for his numerous works on cryptography and other related technologies such as computer and network security, applied cryptography, and blockchain technology.

Biography

Aumasson is currently a Professeur at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), located in Lausanne, Switzerland. He obtained his Ph.D. in 2007, while attending EPFL, where he focused his work on cryptanalysis and provable security.

Before enrolling at EPFL, Aumasson received his B.A. and M.A. degrees in Mathematics at the University of Geneva in Switzerland. After EPFL, he worked as a PostDoc at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, and then held a position as a senior researcher at the International Computer Science Institute in Berkeley, USA.

Work on Cryptography

Aumasson is most famous for his work on cryptography and blockchain technology. He has written a multitude of books and publications on cryptography and related topics, covering topics such as cryptography, provable security, and applied cryptography.

In 2012, he co-authored a paper alongside Thomas Peyrin and Benoît Viguier, entitled “Design of the BLAKE Hash Function” that proposed the BLAKE hash function, which is to this day the most widely used hash function in the world.

Aumasson was also part of the team which designed Round5, a post-quantum-secure encryption algorithm which was designed to make quantum-resistant encryption possible. This encryption is used in secure communication systems, as well as in government-level encryption.

In 2018, Aumasson also led a team of researchers at EPFL that developed a blockchain-based system for transparent commodity trading, which was aimed at eliminating fraud in the commodity market.

Research and Career Activities

In his illustrious career, Aumasson has held numerous positions and actively contributed to research activities in the field of cryptography and related topics. He has chaired the Crypto Forum Research Group (CFRG) from the Internet Research Task Force (IRTF) since 2016, and is currently the chair of the Secure Hash Algorithm Working Group (SHA-WG) at the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). He is part of the working group for several cryptographic standards and has co-authored two National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) cryptographic recommendations.

In 2011, Aumasson was appointed as a permanent adjunct professor at EPFL, where he has been teaching applied cryptography. He was also an invited Professor at ENS Paris, where he taught a course titled Cryptography and Information Security.

Beyond teaching, sharing, and developing knowledge on the field, Aumasson is also well-known in the cryptography community for his blogs, podcasts and talks on various topics related to security and cryptography. He also regularly contributes to the open source cryptanalysis toolkit, Crypto Labs.

Conclusion

Jean-Philippe Aumasson is a noted cryptographer, software engineer and security researcher whose work on cryptography and related topics has established him as a leader in the field. With numerous research works, books, and activities related to cryptography, computer, and network security, applied cryptography, and blockchain technology, he is one of the foremost experts in the field today.