The Experts Agree

Perfect secrecy is both practically and theoretically impossible to break. Claude Shannon proved that perfect secrecy is unbreakable when implemented properly.

Unconditional security allows for negligible failure while perfect security requires zero failure!

Perfect secrecy ensures that the ciphertext reveals no information about the plaintext. In contrast, semantic security means that any information revealed cannot be feasibly extracted without significant expense, powerful resources, and a long time to obtain anything of value.

Perfect Secrecy is Validated by Academic and Cryptography Industry Experts

Academic Articles on Mathematically Unbreakable Shannon's Perfect Secrecy:

Perfect Secrecy and Adversarial Indistinguishability:

    • Summary: This work underscores Shannon’s claim that perfect secrecy, as defined by his information-theoretic model, is mathematically unbreakable if the key length is at least as long as the message. It highlights that any deviation from this principle compromises security.
    • Institution: University of Miami
    • Link: Read PDF

Mathematical Theory of Claude Shannon:

    • Summary: This article restates Shannon’s proof that perfect secrecy is only achievable under strict conditions, emphasizing that, in theory, it is immune to cryptanalysis when these conditions are met. The article details the mathematical robustness of Shannon’s approach.
    • Institution: University of Texas at Austin
    • Link: Read PDF

The Essential Message: Claude Shannon and the Making of Information Theory:

    • Summary: Discusses Shannon’s theoretical breakthroughs in cryptography, stating explicitly that perfect secrecy, as formulated, cannot be broken as long as the necessary criteria are fulfilled. The article emphasizes the enduring impact of this assertion.
    • Institution: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
    • Link: Read PDF

Claude Shannon's Original Work on Information Theory and Perfect Secrecy:

International Association for Cryptologic Research Presentation of Shannon’s 1945 A Mathematical Theory of Cryptography:

    • Summary: In 1945 Claude Shannon wrote a paper for Bell Telephone Labs about applying information theory to cryptography – Perfect Secrecy. This work was not publicly disclosed until a shorter, declassified version was produced in 1949.
    • Organization: International Association for Cryptologic Research – Bell Telephone Labs
    • Link: Link to Presentation

Shannon’s 1945 Declassified Perfect Secrecy:

    • Summary: “Perfect Secrecy” is defined by requiring of a system that after a cryptogram is intercepted by the enemy the a posteriori probabilities of this cryptogram representing various messages be identically the same as the a priori probabilities of the same messages before the interception.
    • Organization: International Association for Cryptologic Research 
    • Link: Link to Presentation
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