[jpdoctor]

> also made DES more resistent to differential cryptanalysis

Was that the result of the last-minute "black box" change? I never heard the result of that, so any light you shed would be welcome.

[ReidZB]

Correct. The NSA suggested changes in the DES S-boxes, which led to many questions. Ultimately, what was discovered is that their changes strengthened DES, not weakened it, as some had feared.

You can read more about their involvement here: http://crypto.stackexchange.com/questions/16/how-were-the-de...

[jpdoctor]

Very interesting, and not exactly news, which tells you the last time I looked at this. Obviously, I'm a dinosaur.

Thanks for the pointer.