RSA(R) Conference Announces 15th Annual Awards Recipients

RSA Conference, the world's leading information security conferences and expositions, today announced the honorees of its 15th annual corporate awards program. Award applicants were judged in the fields of mathematics, public policy and security practices. Also presented this year was a lifetime achievement award given out to an individual who has made a big impact in information security over the last 21 years. This year's recipients were revealed yesterday at RSA(R) Conference 2012 in San Francisco.

The recipients of this year's RSA Conference Corporate Awards are as follows:
Excellence in the Field of Mathematics Award Eli Biham, Professor, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Computer Science Dr. Mitsuru Matsui, Senior Researcher, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation Professor Eli Biham and Dr. Mitsuru Matsui have both contributed groundbreaking work on the cryptanalysis of symmetric-key ciphers. Biham, a professor and dean of the Computer Science department at the Technion-Israeli Institute of Technology, co-discovered the technique of differential cryptanalysis with Adi Shamir in the late 1980's. Dr. Matsui, inspired by Biham and Shamir's work, discovered the technique of linear cryptanalysis in 1993. The following year, he was the first to publicly report an experimental cryptanalysis of DES.

Excellence in the Field of Public Policy Award Congressman Mac Thornberry (R-TX), Chair of the House Republican Task Force on Cyber Security Mac Thornberry, a lifelong resident of the 13th District of Texas, has established himself as a leader in national security, an area in which he continues to be given new responsibilities and opportunities to help advance the security of our nation. In early 2011, Thornberry was tapped by the Speaker of the House and Majority Leader to spearhead a Cyber Security Task Force to guide House legislative action on the growing national security and economic threat. Charged with making recommendations in a number of areas including protecting critical infrastructure and sharing cyber security information, the Task Force released its recommendations on October 5, 2011 to favorable response from both sides of the House and the Senate, as well as the White House, private businesses and other outside organizations.