New Bounds on the Distance Distribution of Extended Goppa Codes

AbstractWe derive new estimates for the error term in the binomial approximation to the distance distribution of extended Goppa codes. This is an improvement on the earlier bounds by Vladuts and Skorobogatov, and Levy and Litsyn

Diameter, Covering Index, Covering Radius and Eigenvalues

AbstractFan Chung has recently derived an upper bound on the diameter of a regular graph as a function of the second largest eigenvalue in absolute value. We generalize this bound to the case of bipartite biregular graphs, and regular directed graphs.We also observe the connection with the primitivity exponent of the adjacency matrix. This applies directly to the covering number of Finite Non Abelian Simple Groups (FINASIG). We generalize this latter problem to primitive association schemes, such as the conjugacy scheme of Paige's simple loop.By noticing that the covering radius of a linear code is the diameter of a Cayley graph on the cosets, we derive an upper bound on the covering radius of a code as a function of the scattering of the weights of the dual code. When the code has even weights, we obtain a bound on the covering radius as a function of the dual distance dl which is tighter, for d⊥ large enough, than the recent bounds of Tietäväinen

Higher Hamming weights for locally recoverable codes on algebraic curves

We study the locally recoverable codes on algebraic curves. In the first part of this article, we provide a bound of generalized Hamming weight of these codes. Whereas in the second part, we propose a new family of algebraic geometric LRC codes, that are LRC codes from Norm-Trace curve. Finally, using some properties of Hermitian codes, we improve the bounds of distance proposed in [1] for some Hermitian LRC codes. [1] A. Barg, I. Tamo, and S. Vlladut. Locally recoverable codes on algebraic curves. arXiv preprint arXiv:1501.04904, 2015

Error-Correction Coding and Decoding: Bounds, Codes, Decoders, Analysis and Applications

Coding; Communications; Engineering; Networks; Information Theory; Algorithm

Some Notes on Code-Based Cryptography

This thesis presents new cryptanalytic results in several areas of coding-based cryptography. In addition, we also investigate the possibility of using convolutional codes in code-based public-key cryptography. The first algorithm that we present is an information-set decoding algorithm, aiming towards the problem of decoding random linear codes. We apply the generalized birthday technique to information-set decoding, improving the computational complexity over previous approaches. Next, we present a new version of the McEliece public-key cryptosystem based on convolutional codes. The original construction uses Goppa codes, which is an algebraic code family admitting a well-defined code structure. In the two constructions proposed, large parts of randomly generated parity checks are used. By increasing the entropy of the generator matrix, this presumably makes structured attacks more difficult. Following this, we analyze a McEliece variant based on quasi-cylic MDPC codes. We show that when the underlying code construction has an even dimension, the system is susceptible to, what we call, a squaring attack. Our results show that the new squaring attack allows for great complexity improvements over previous attacks on this particular McEliece construction. Then, we introduce two new techniques for finding low-weight polynomial multiples. Firstly, we propose a general technique based on a reduction to the minimum-distance problem in coding, which increases the multiplicity of the low-weight codeword by extending the code. We use this algorithm to break some of the instances used by the TCHo cryptosystem. Secondly, we propose an algorithm for finding weight-4 polynomials. By using the generalized birthday technique in conjunction with increasing the multiplicity of the low-weight polynomial multiple, we obtain a much better complexity than previously known algorithms. Lastly, two new algorithms for the learning parities with noise (LPN) problem are proposed. The first one is a general algorithm, applicable to any instance of LPN. The algorithm performs favorably compared to previously known algorithms, breaking the 80-bit security of the widely used (512,1/8) instance. The second one focuses on LPN instances over a polynomial ring, when the generator polynomial is reducible. Using the algorithm, we break an 80-bit security instance of the Lapin cryptosystem

How many weights can a cyclic code have ?

Upper and lower bounds on the largest number of weights in a cyclic code of given length, dimension and alphabet are given. An application to irreducible cyclic codes is considered. Sharper upper bounds are given for the special cyclic codes (called here strongly cyclic), {whose nonzero codewords have period equal to the length of the code}. Asymptotics are derived on the function $\Gamma(k,q),$ {that is defined as} the largest number of nonzero weights a cyclic code of dimension $k$ over \F_q can have, and an algorithm to compute it is sketched. The nonzero weights in some infinite families of Reed-Muller codes, either binary or $q$-ary, as well as in the $q$-ary Hamming code are determined, two difficult results of independent interest.Comment: submitted on 21 June, 201