Learn to deploy proven cryptographic tools in your applications and services Cryptography is, quite simply, what makes security and privacy in the digital world possible. Tech professionals, including programmers, IT admins, and security analysts, need to understand how cryptography works to protect users, data, and assets. Implementing Cryptography Using Python will teach you the essentials, so you can apply proven cryptographic tools to secure your applications and systems. Because this book uses Python, an easily accessible language that has become one of the standards for cryptography implementation, you'll be able to quickly learn how to secure applications and data of all kinds. In this easy-to-read guide, well-known cybersecurity expert Shannon Bray walks you through creating secure communications in public channels using public-key cryptography. You'll also explore methods of authenticating messages to ensure that they haven't been tampered with in transit. Finally, you'll learn how to use digital signatures to let others verify the messages sent through your services. Learn how to implement proven cryptographic tools, using easy-to-understand examples written in Python Discover the history of cryptography and understand its critical importance in today's digital communication systems Work through real-world examples to understand the pros and cons of various authentication methods Protect your end-users and ensure that your applications and systems are using up-to-date cryptography

An introduction reviews previous scholarship, and concludes that the cultic aspects of Judges 17-18 have not been examined in any depth. It then goes on to deal with the historical and redactional issues which previous scholars have found interesting. The issues of provenance and dating are then examined with the conclusion that the text was written down in the immediate aftermath of the Assyrian conquest of Dan in an attempt to preserve its sacred traditions. The text therefore reflects the self-understanding of the priests of Dan in the period immediately prior to its fall. The text of Judges 17-18 is then subjected to a rhetorical critical examination, followed by a more traditional form critical study. The next section is a comparison of similar cultic foundation stories from other cultures. Three major chapters examine the three major cultic issues raised by the text itself: images, priests and divination. Each chapter draws on evidence from the Hebrew Bible and its environment in an attempt to clarify the nature of the cult of Dan. Broadly, each chapter concludes that although there were some features peculiar to the cult reflected by Dan, in general, the Danite cult was not greatly different from that of its neighbours. A final chapter deals with what the text says about the tribe of Levi, with the conclusion that according to Judges 17-18, there was once a secular tribe of Levi. The conclusion draws a brief picture of cultic life in Dan in its final years.