Joseph Kilian, PhD

Joseph Kilian is a cryptographer and researcher who has contributed foundational work in interactive proofs, zero-knowledge proofs, and computational complexity, most recently at NEC Laboratories America. Kilian earned both his undergraduate and graduate degrees from MIT, completing his Ph.D. in applied mathematics there, with his fellowship beginning in 1986. His doctoral and early research produced landmark results including the first unconditionally secure bit commitment and oblivious transfer protocols based solely on one-way functions, and important results on the round complexity of zero-knowledge proofs. These contributions helped establish the mathematical foundations of modern cryptography.