1. Comparing Information Without Leaking It.
- Author
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Fagin, Ronald, Naor, Moni, and Winkler, Peter
- Subjects
DISCLOSURE ,INTERPERSONAL communication ,CRYPTOGRAPHY ,PERMUTATIONS ,COMPUTER software ,GOSSIP - Abstract
This article presents solutions to some real-life problems. Two persons may wish to determine whether they possess the same information without leaking it. Similarly two persons may each wish to determine whether the other is a co-member of a certain secret society. Still other case arise when two people wish to gossip without spreading rumors. Cryptographic solutions have not proved to be the best solutions to this problem. Many other solutions have emerged.. A trusted third party can be found. All information is presented to him or her with the agreement that only the required results are revealed. A computer program can also be used as a third party. The Electronic Trusted Party can be used for selecting an appropriate mode and specifying the number of participants and type of information desired. Random permutation method can also be used for solving this problem. Physical envelopes avoids leaking of information. The envelopes solution can be implemented digitally and thus converted into a cryptographic protocol.
- Published
- 1996
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