Thomas Berson

Dr. Thomas Berson is a cryptographer who views cryptography as the deep study of trust and betrayal, alternatively as the use and abuse of secrets. He has spent his career working on both the defensive and offensive sides of the information security battle. He is attracted most strongly to security issues raised in the intersection of technology, business, and world events. He is a student of Sun Tzu’s Art of War and its applicability to modern information conflict. He has lectured on that topic in Washington, Beijing, and Stanford.

Dr. Berson is Advisor to the CEO and Board of Directors at Salesforce. His portfolio includes cybersecurity, national security, and geopolitical matters. Anagram Laboratories, Dr. Berson’s cybersecurity consultancy, will celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2026. 

Dr. Berson was the first person to be elected a Fellow of the International Association for Cryptologic Research. He was an editor of the Journal of Cryptology for fourteen years. He is a Past-Chair of the IEEE Technical Committee on Security and Privacy, and a Past-President of the International Association for Cryptologic Research.

Dr. Berson is an elected Member of the US National Academy of Engineering. His NAE citation reads, “For contributions to cybersecurity in the commercial and intelligence communities.” His National Research Council committee memberships include the Forum on Cybersecurity Resilience, the Committee on Computer Security in the Department of Energy, the Committee to Review DoD C4I Plans and Programs, and the Committee on Offensive Information Warfare.

Dr. Berson earned a B.S. in physics from the State University of New York and a Ph.D. in computer science from the University of London. He was a Visiting Fellow in Mathematics at the University of Cambridge, and is a life member of Clare Hall, Cambridge.

Dr. Berson’s Erdös Number is 2; his amateur radio call sign is ND2T.