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The Disparity between Work and Entropy in Cryptology

Authors:
John Pliam
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URL: http://eprint.iacr.org/1998/024
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Abstract: A brief theory of work is developed. In it, the work-factor and guesswork of a random variable are linked to intuitive notions of time complexity in a brute-force attack. Bounds are given for a specific work-factor called the minimum majority. Tight bounds are given for the guesswork in terms of variation distance. Differences between work-factor, guesswork and the entropy of a random variable are pointed out, calling into question a common misconception about entropy indicating work.
BibTeX
@misc{eprint-1998-11320,
  title={The Disparity between Work and Entropy in Cryptology},
  booktitle={IACR Eprint archive},
  keywords={Entropy, Information Theory, Brute-Force Attack, Work Factor, Guessing Entropy.},
  url={http://eprint.iacr.org/1998/024},
  note={Appeared in the THEORY OF CRYPTOGRAPHY LIBRARY and has been included in the ePrint Archive. pliam@ima.umn.edu. 10500 received November 9th, 1998. Revised, February 1st, 1999.},
  author={John Pliam},
  year=1998
}