The Center for Education and Research in Information Assurance and Security (CERIAS)

The Center for Education and Research in
Information Assurance and Security (CERIAS)
Center for Education and Research in Information Assurance and Security

Gene Spafford - Purdue University

Students: Spring 2026, unless noted otherwise, sessions will be virtual on Zoom.

All About PGP

Sep 15, 1995

Abstract

This will be a discussion about PGP and public-key cryptography. We will discuss how public-key cryptography works, elements of privacy-enhanced mail and digital signatures, and some of the politics and law associated with cryptography and e-mail.
Seminar attendees with CS department accounts can find PGP software and documentation installed in the /usr/local/pgp directory. Everyone can find some WWW links to PGP information via Spaf's hotlist entries for PGP .

If you generate a PGP key ("pgp -kg") prior to the meeting, extract it and e-mail it to Spaf prior to the meeting ("pgp -kxtaf myname | Mail -s 'My pgp key' spaf@cerias.purdue.edu") -- be sure to sign it yourself before you mail it! Then, generate the key signature ("pgp -kvc myname") and bring it with you, along with some ID. After you present your signature to Spaf at the seminar, he'll sign your key. Others at the seminar might also be willing to sign your key after getting your signature.


About the Speaker

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Dr. Eugene Spafford is a Distinguished Professor with an appointment in Computer Science at Purdue University, where he has served on the faculty since 1987. He is also a professor of Philosophy (courtesy), a professor of Communication (courtesy), a professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering (courtesy), a professor of Nuclear Engineering (courtesy), and a Professor of Political Science (courtesy). He serves on several advisory and editorial boards. Spafford's current research interests are primarily in information security, computer crime investigation, and information ethics. He is generally recognized as one of the senior leaders in the field of computing.

Spaf (as he is known to his friends, colleagues, and students) is the founder and Executive Director Emeritus of the Purdue CERIAS (Center for Education and Research in Information Assurance and Security). He was the founder and director of the (superseded) COAST Laboratory.


Ways to Watch

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