Cryptography is an indispensable tool for protecting information in computer systems. This week we speak with Dan Boneh who teaches a course, on applied cryptography and computer security at Stanford University, about learning the inner workings of cryptographic systems and how to correctly use them in real-world applications. The course begins with a detailed discussion of how two parties who have a shared secret key can communicate securely when a powerful adversary eavesdrops and tampers with traffic. We invite Dan on the air to examine many deployed protocols and analyze mistakes in existing systems. In addition, the boys chat about how crypto icons flooded Fortune’s 40 Under 40 list this year! We talk about how Coinbase and Ethereum make the list sandwiched between Rihanna. I refuse to refer to her as 'Riri'.