Philip Zimmermann

Date: 2^nd March, 9:00 AM IST (Sunday)

Pretty Good Privacy (PGP), VoIP encryption protocols notably ZRTP and Zfone are some of the creations of Philip Zimmermann. Born in Camden, New Jersey, to a concrete mixer truck driver, he received a B.S. degree in computer science from Florida Atlantic University in 1978.

He was one of the first to make asymmetric, or public key, encryption software readily available to the general public. He released the source code for PGP, which is now the most widely used email encryption software in the world, and made it available overseas via the Internet in 1991.

In early 1996, Zimmermann founded PGP Inc. and released an updated version of PGP and some additional related products.Before founding PGP Inc, he was a software engineer for more than 20 years, specializing in cryptography & data security, data communications, and real-time embedded systems. His interest in the political side of cryptography grew out of his background in military policy issues. Zimmermann now serves as a special advisor and consultant to PGP Inc. In addition,he is a fellow at the Stanford Law School's Centre for Internet and Society. As a principal designer of the cryptographic key agreement protocol (the "association model") for the Wireless USB standard, he has helped further secure VoIP from threats like wiretapping and eavesdropping.

Zimmermann has received numerous technical and humanitarian awards for his pioneering work in cryptography, including the Louis Brandeis Award from Privacy International in 1999, the Nobert Wiener Award for Social and Professional Responsibility in 1996. In 2006 , PGP was voted by eWeek as 9th in the 25 Most Influential and Innovative Products introduced since the invention of the PC.

This cryptography virtuoso will be gracing our portals during Pragyan '08. Don't miss the opportunity of a lifetime.