Here are 78 books that Understanding Cryptography fans have personally recommended if you like Understanding Cryptography. Book DNA is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of Security Engineering: A Guide to Building Dependable Distributed Systems

Dominik Merli Author Of Engineering Secure Devices: A Practical Guide for Embedded System Architects and Developers

From my list on embedded system security enthusiasts.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been playing with computers and electronics since childhood. I even supported the people in my village with their computer issues back then. During my studies in electrical engineering, I learned how to solve technical challenges with structured approaches. At this time, I became fascinated by topics like cryptography and embedded system security. The books on this list helped me understand important concepts and practical real-world obstacles. I hope they are also of value to you!

Dominik's book list on embedded system security enthusiasts

Dominik Merli Why Dominik loves this book

When I take this book off my shelf, the probability that I find the answer I'm looking for is very high. Yes, it's a big book, and I'm pretty sure I haven't read every single page yet, but because of its broad coverage of security engineering knowledge, from crypto to real-world processes, it is an invaluable reference for teaching and practical cyber security.

By Ross Anderson ,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Security Engineering as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Now that there's software in everything, how can you make anything secure? Understand how to engineer dependable systems with this newly updated classic

In Security Engineering: A Guide to Building Dependable Distributed Systems, Third Edition Cambridge University professor Ross Anderson updates his classic textbook and teaches readers how to design, implement, and test systems to withstand both error and attack.

This book became a best-seller in 2001 and helped establish the discipline of security engineering. By the second edition in 2008, underground dark markets had let the bad guys specialize and scale up; attacks were increasingly on users rather than…


If you love Understanding Cryptography...

Book cover of The Rosewood Penny

The Rosewood Penny by J.S. Fields,

2023 Queer Indie Award Nominee!

The dragons of Yuro have been hunted to extinction.

On a small, isolated island, in a reclusive forest, lives bandit leader Marani and her brother Jacks. With their outlaw band they rob from the rich to feed themselves, raiding carriages and dodging the occasional vindictive…

Book cover of Threat Modeling: Designing for Security

Dominik Merli Author Of Engineering Secure Devices: A Practical Guide for Embedded System Architects and Developers

From my list on embedded system security enthusiasts.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been playing with computers and electronics since childhood. I even supported the people in my village with their computer issues back then. During my studies in electrical engineering, I learned how to solve technical challenges with structured approaches. At this time, I became fascinated by topics like cryptography and embedded system security. The books on this list helped me understand important concepts and practical real-world obstacles. I hope they are also of value to you!

Dominik's book list on embedded system security enthusiasts

Dominik Merli Why Dominik loves this book

I love this book because it has the power to pull even technical people out of their “security technology will save the world” bubble. I regularly encounter engineers randomly throwing countermeasures like strong encryption, secure boot, and TPMs at devices without knowing why.

This book provided me with a set of methods and practical hints for identifying and assessing relevant security threats—a much better starting point than penetration testing! 

By Adam Shostack ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Threat Modeling as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The only security book to be chosen as a Dr. Dobbs Jolt Award Finalist since Bruce Schneier's Secrets and Lies and Applied Cryptography! Adam Shostack is responsible for security development lifecycle threat modeling at Microsoft and is one of a handful of threat modeling experts in the world. Now, he is sharing his considerable expertise into this unique book. With pages of specific actionable advice, he details how to build better security into the design of systems, software, or services from the outset. You'll explore various threat modeling approaches, find out how to test your designs against threats, and learn…


Book cover of The Hardware Hacking Handbook: Breaking Embedded Security with Hardware Attacks

Dominik Merli Author Of Engineering Secure Devices: A Practical Guide for Embedded System Architects and Developers

From my list on embedded system security enthusiasts.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been playing with computers and electronics since childhood. I even supported the people in my village with their computer issues back then. During my studies in electrical engineering, I learned how to solve technical challenges with structured approaches. At this time, I became fascinated by topics like cryptography and embedded system security. The books on this list helped me understand important concepts and practical real-world obstacles. I hope they are also of value to you!

Dominik's book list on embedded system security enthusiasts

Dominik Merli Why Dominik loves this book

I like embedded systems a lot, but I like hardware attacks on them even more because they represent very powerful attackers! I love the wonderful collection of expert knowledge and practical experience on side-channel analysis, fault attacks, and corresponding countermeasures created by Colin O'Flynn and Jasper van Woudenberg.

When reading through this one, I always remember my time as a PhD student, when my colleagues and I performed several tricky hardware attacks in our lab... That was definitely challenging but also a lot of fun!

By Jasper van Woudenberg , Colin O'Flynn ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Hardware Hacking Handbook as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The Hardware Hacking Handbook is a deep dive into embedded security, perfect for readers interested in designing, analysing, and attacking devices. You'll start with a crash course in embedded security and hardware interfaces and learn how to set up a test lab. Real-world examples and hands-on labs throughout allow you to explore hardware interfaces and practice various attacks.


If you love Christof Paar...

Book cover of Chilled to the Bone

Chilled to the Bone by B.D. Lawrence,

Jake Sledge, a rugged ex-cop turned private eye, teams up with his colossal partner Bobo to navigate the gritty streets of River City.

A murdered lawyer drags them into a web of political intrigue, neo-Nazi thugs, and bloody showdowns. With sharp wit and hard-hitting action, Jake tackles scumbags the only…

Book cover of Practical IoT Hacking: The Definitive Guide to Attacking the Internet of Things

Dominik Merli Author Of Engineering Secure Devices: A Practical Guide for Embedded System Architects and Developers

From my list on embedded system security enthusiasts.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been playing with computers and electronics since childhood. I even supported the people in my village with their computer issues back then. During my studies in electrical engineering, I learned how to solve technical challenges with structured approaches. At this time, I became fascinated by topics like cryptography and embedded system security. The books on this list helped me understand important concepts and practical real-world obstacles. I hope they are also of value to you!

Dominik's book list on embedded system security enthusiasts

Dominik Merli Why Dominik loves this book

I love thinking about potential vulnerabilities and threat scenarios in IoT devices, because they are everywhere and they have already gained a significant amount of power.

Practical IoT Hacking is a wonderful read that stimulates my imagination about how to tackle devices and systems, but it doesn’t stop there: it even addresses the practical security analysis needs of my students and me.

By Fotios Chantzis , Ioannis Stais , Paulino Calderon , Evangelos Deirmentzoglou , Beau Woods

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Practical IoT Hacking as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Geared towards security researchers, IT teams, and penetration testers, application testers, developers, and IT administrators, this book teaches readers how to get started with hacking Internet connected devices. Readers dig deep into technical (and related legal) issues, as they learn what kinds of devices to use as hacking tools and which make the best targets. The authors, all experts in the field, cover the kinds of vulnerabilities found in IoT devices, explain how to exploit their network protocols, and how to leverage security flaws and certain hardware interfaces found in the physical devices themselves.


Book cover of The Science of Programming

Federico Kereki Author Of Mastering JavaScript Functional Programming: Write clean, robust, and maintainable web and server code using functional JavaScript and TypeScript

From my list on the theory and practice of computer programming.

Why am I passionate about this?

I have been working with computers for decades now – having started with programmable handheld calculators and working my way up and down through mainframes, mini- and micro-computers. I always thought there is an art to writing software, and that good software can be read and admired. Maintainability, readability, and testability are some core needs for software, and after going through many programming paradigms, I feel that functional programming (FP) is the way to go – and several modern web frameworks agree. JavaScript (and now, TypeScript) are essential to web development, and I wanted to show how FP could be successfully used with those languages, and thus my book.

Federico's book list on the theory and practice of computer programming

Federico Kereki Why Federico loves this book

This book is essential in that it follows a systematic and scientific approach to software development, advocating for clarity in expressing algorithms, providing a rigorous framework for designing and reasoning about programs, and, fundamentally, always focusing on formal methods and mathematical techniques to ensure correctness and efficiency in programming code.

Most importantly, the book doesn’t just show you how to prove programs correct, but also teaches how to arrive from a definition to an efficient and correct solution, so I would recommend this to every developer.


By David Gries ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Science of Programming as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Describes basic programming principles and their step-by-
step applications.Numerous examples are included.


Book cover of Foundation ActionScript 3.0 Animation: Making Things Move!

Scott Murray Author Of Unstuck: Javascript

From my list on learning how to code interactive graphics.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been making web pages since the World Wide Web began in the mid-1990s. Back then, the web was visually quite sparse. It wasn’t until the late 2000s that new browser capabilities let the web get visually interesting and an exciting place for interactive graphics. Graphics are great: they can be informational (like charts and maps) or purely aesthetic. My personal journey of learning to code interactive graphics has been so rewarding that I’ve shared the love with others through teaching creative coding workshops and undergraduate courses. If you’re new to coding or computer graphics, I hope you’ll give one of these books a try!

Scott's book list on learning how to code interactive graphics

Scott Murray Why Scott loves this book

Okay, hear me out. Yes, this book was published in 2007. Yes, it’s ostensibly about ActionScript, the coding language in Flash, which no one uses anymore. But you won’t use this book to learn ActionScript or Flash: You’ll use it to learn how to make things move with code, in any language. You’ll skip over the ActionScript-specific parts in favor of the lucid explanations and helpful illustrations. Your visual brain will appreciate seeing how sines, cosines, and tangents are relevant—and necessary!—to make digital things move. (Your heart will wish your brain had paid better attention in trigonometry class years earlier, but hey, no regrets!) The chapters “Trigonometry for Animation” and “Velocity and Acceleration” alone are worth the purchase price.

By Keith Peters ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Foundation ActionScript 3.0 Animation as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

This is the first definitive and authoritative book available on ActionScript 3 animation techniques. ActionScript animation is a very popular discipline for Flash developers to learn. The essential skill set has been learned by many Flash developers through the first edition of this book. This has now been updated to ActionScript 3, Adobe's new and improved scripting language. All of the code has been updated, and some new techniques have been added to take advantage of ActionScript 3's new features, including the display list and new event architecture. The code can be used with the Flash 9 IDE, Flex Builder…


If you love Understanding Cryptography...

Book cover of The Woman and Her Stars

The Woman and Her Stars by Penny Haw,

Caroline Herschel has always lived in the shadows. Beholden to her wildly popular older brother, William, who rescued her from servitude, she's worked hard to build a life for herself – one where she can go unnoticed and repay the debt she believes she owes him. But when her brother…

Book cover of Beyond the Little Blue Box

Jamil Hasan Author Of Signals Through The Noise

From my list on the hidden financial structures shaping the world.

Why am I passionate about this?

I'm drawn to books that uncover hidden systems because I've lived with the consequences of not understanding them. For the past nine years, I’ve wanted to build my business, but I've also been challenged to give up and go back to a regular job because I earned little income and lost money in scams, theft, and crypto exchange bankruptcies. Those losses strained my relationship with my family. They forced me to see how little I actually knew about money. But I kept going. I host podcasts and write books. These books about systems helped me turn those losses into clarity and kept me building anyway.

Jamil's book list on the hidden financial structures shaping the world

Jamil Hasan Why Jamil loves this book

I didn’t read this book about a hacker who broke into the phone number system just for a fun read. I read it as a chance to try something similar with artificial intelligence to protect myself. I get tons of spam and phishing emails.

I get fifty robocalls a day. At first, I just ignored them. But then they became impossible to continuously ignore because some seemed so real. I needed a way to understand the current landscape and how this stuff spreads.

I became a lot more curious and looked beneath the surface. The book forced me to stop just looking at face value. I stopped watching systems and started learning them. I can now spot the fraud attempts. I also discovered how much I care about ethics, values, and morals.

By C. Wilson Fraser , John T. Draper ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Beyond the Little Blue Box as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

John “Captain Crunch” Draper, legendary phone-phreaker and hacker, helped inspire Apple and a generation of technologists with his groundbreaking exploits. This biography-adventure traces his life through invention, mischief, and chaos, combining the outrageous stories he told with the wild escapades of his later years. Told with humor and irreverence, it captures a brilliant and eccentric figure whose impact on technology and hacker culture is still felt today.

Before personal computers and the Internet, John “Captain Crunch” Draper explored the extraordinary possibilities hidden in the phone system with wit, intelligence, and relentless curiosity. A pioneer of the hacker movement, his…


Book cover of Managing Humans: Biting and Humorous Tales of a Software Engineering Manager

Jaime Buelta Author Of Python Automation Cookbook

From my list on for Python and non-Python developers.

Why am I passionate about this?

Since I was a kid, I’ve been passionate about technology and had a clear vocation to work with computers. I’ve been a developer for more than 20 years now, spending half of them mainly in the Python environment, and I’ve always been interested in improving my skills. While it’s true that software development is a field that changes constantly and technology evolves at great speed, there are some elements that remain relatively unchanged and can be used to compound knowledge and ability. In particular, the elements that are closer to the human element, teamwork, coordination, etc. are quite stable over time.

Jaime's book list on for Python and non-Python developers

Jaime Buelta Why Jaime loves this book

Michael Lopp, or Rands, as he is commonly known online, has been sharing his knowledge as a software manager for years, mainly through his blog. He is one of the most insightful voices about the art of management in a software environment, and even if you are not a manager yourself (and don’t want to become one), will make you understand and better collaborate with your own manager, and be ready when you need to lead a team or understand how it is to work with other humans.

By Michael Lopp ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Managing Humans as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Managing Humans is a selection of the best essays from Michael Lopp's popular website Rands in Repose(www.randsinrepose.com). Lopp is one of the most sought-after IT managers in Silicon Valley, and draws on his experiences at Apple, Netscape, Symantec, and Borland. This book reveals a variety of different approaches for creating innovative, happy development teams. It covers handling conflict, managing wildly differing personality types, infusing innovation into insane product schedules, and figuring out how to build lasting and useful engineering culture. The essays are biting, hilarious, and always informative.


Book cover of Introduction to Algorithms

Chris Zimmerman Author Of The Rules of Programming: How to Write Better Code

From my list on programming for people who want to be good at it.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve spent most of my life writing code—and too much of that life teaching new programmers how to write code like a professional. If it’s true that you only truly understand something after teaching it to someone else, then at this point I must really understand programming! Unfortunately, that understanding has not led to an endless stream of bug-free code, but it has led to some informed opinions on programming and books about programming.

Chris' book list on programming for people who want to be good at it

Chris Zimmerman Why Chris loves this book

Yes, it’s a textbook, albeit a particularly well-written one. You may already have it on your shelf, if you’ve taken a programming class or two.

I’m way too old to have used CLRS as a textbook, though! For me, it’s an effectively bottomless collection of neat little ideas—an easy-to-describe problem, then a series of increasingly clever ways to solve that problem. How often do I end up using one of those algorithms? Not very often! But every time I read the description of an algorithm, I get a nugget of pure joy from the “aha” moment when I first understand how it works.

If you love Christof Paar...

Book cover of Murder, Lies and Chocolate

Murder, Lies and Chocolate by Sally Berneathy,

Book 2, Death by Chocolate series.

Rodney Bradford comes into Lindsay's restaurant, offers to buy her small house for double its value, eats her brownies, and drops dead on the sidewalk in front. Next, her almost-ex-husband offers to sign the divorce papers, but only if she'll give him her small,…

Book cover of Pattern Recognition and Machine Learning

Martin Musiol Author Of Generative AI: Navigating the Course to the Artificial General Intelligence Future

From my list on future-proof yourself for the AI era.

Why am I passionate about this?

My passion for generative AI first ignited in 2016 when I spoke about it at a conference, and ever since then, I can’t stop! I've created an online course, a newsletter and even wrote a book to spread knowledge on this groundbreaking technology. As an instructor, I empower others to explore the boundless potential of generative AI applications. Day in day out, I assist clients in crafting their own generative AI solutions, tailoring them to their unique needs.

Martin's book list on future-proof yourself for the AI era

Martin Musiol Why Martin loves this book

Bishop’s book laid the mathematical groundwork for me, making it a solid foundation for anyone venturing into Generative AI.

I love how it covers Bayesian inference, graphical models, and machine learning fundamentals in a clear, approachable way. I also think, in my personal opinion, that reading my book after this one would be a natural progression to understand where AI is heading, building on the core concepts that Bishop established. 


By Christopher M. Bishop ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Pattern Recognition and Machine Learning as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Pattern recognition has its origins in engineering, whereas machine learning grew out of computer science. However, these activities can be viewed as two facets of the same field, and together they have undergone substantial development over the past ten years. In particular, Bayesian methods have grown from a specialist niche to become mainstream, while graphical models have emerged as a general framework for describing and applying probabilistic models. Also, the practical applicability of Bayesian methods has been greatly enhanced through the development of a range of approximate inference algorithms such as variational Bayes and expectation pro- gation. Similarly, new models…


Book cover of Security Engineering: A Guide to Building Dependable Distributed Systems
Book cover of Threat Modeling: Designing for Security
Book cover of The Hardware Hacking Handbook: Breaking Embedded Security with Hardware Attacks

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