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Books on cryptography have been published sporadically and with variable quality for a long time. This is despite the paradox that secrecy is of the essence in sending confidential messages – see Kerckhoffs' principle.
In contrast, the revolutions in cryptography and secure communications since the 1970s are covered in the available literature.
The earliest known book on cryptography was an ancient work, now lost, but referred to by the ancient roman grammarian Aulus Gellius. He mentioned that an earlier grammarian named Probus wrote a book on the subject and that the book mentioned Julius Caesar's use of rudimentary cryptograms during his rule. The next work that we know of was Steganographia, sive Ars concealendi -- three volumes written by Johannes Trithemius. Though the books were about cryptography, he concealed this in mystical language which the Catholic Church mistook for black magic. It banned the work, listing it in the Index Librorum Prohibitorum. Many writers claimed to have invented unbreakable ciphers. None were, though it sometimes took a long while to establish this.
In the 19th century, the general standard improved somewhat (e.g., works by Auguste Kerckhoffs, Friedrich Kasiski, and Étienne Bazeries). Colonel Parker Hitt and William Friedman in the early 20th century also wrote books on cryptography. These authors, and others, mostly abandoned any mystical or magical tone.
With the invention of radio, much of military communications went wireless, allowing the possibility of enemy interception much more readily than tapping into a landline. This increased the need to protect communications. By the end of World War I, cryptography and its literature began to be officially limited. One exception was the 1931 book The American Black Chamber by Herbert Yardley, which gave some insight into American cryptologic success stories, including the Zimmermann telegram and the breaking of Japanese codes during the Washington Naval Conference.
Significant books on cryptography include:
From the end of World War II until the early 1980s most aspects of modern cryptography were regarded as the special concern of governments and the military and were protected by custom and, in some cases, by statute. The most significant work to be published on cryptography in this period is undoubtedly David Kahn's The Codebreakers, which was published at a time (mid-1960s) when virtually no information on the modern practice of cryptography was available. Kahn has said that over ninety percent of its content was previously unpublished.
The book caused serious concern at the NSA despite its lack of coverage of specific modern cryptographic practice, so much so that after failing to prevent the book being published, NSA staff were informed to not even acknowledge the existence of the book if asked. In the US military, mere possession of a copy by cryptographic personnel was grounds for some considerable suspicion.[citation needed] Perhaps the single greatest importance of the book was the impact it had on the next generation of cryptographers. Whitfield Diffie has made comments in interviews about the effect it had on him.[failed verification]
