Brian LaMacchia
Computer security specialist
Brian A. LaMacchia is a computer security specialist.
Early Life and Education
Brian A. LaMacchia earned three degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology: an S.B. in 1990, an S.M. in 1991, and a Ph.D. in 1996. His graduate work at MIT laid the groundwork for his subsequent contributions to public-key infrastructure and cryptographic systems.
Early Career and MIT Contributions
During his time at MIT, LaMacchia became widely recognized for establishing the MIT PGP Key Server, which became the first key-centric public-key infrastructure (PKI) implementation to see wide-scale use. He also wrote the first web interface for a PGP Key Server, a contribution that helped make cryptographic key management accessible to a broader internet audience at a formative period in the web's development.
Career at Microsoft
LaMacchia spent a significant portion of his career at Microsoft, where he held several senior roles. He served as a Distinguished Engineer and headed the Security and Cryptography team within Microsoft Research (MSR). In that capacity, his team's primary focus was the development of quantum-resistant public-key cryptographic algorithms and protocols.
He was also a founding member of the Microsoft Cryptography Review Board, through which he consulted on security and cryptography architectures, protocols, and implementations across the company. Prior to his role in MSR, he served as Director of Security and Cryptography in the Microsoft Extreme Computing Group.
At Microsoft, LaMacchia played a leading role in the design of the security architecture for .NET, designing and leading the development team responsible for that architecture. He also served as a security architect on Palladium and contributed to the design of XKMS.
Standards Contributions
LaMacchia has been a significant contributor to several major internet and web security standards. He played a leading role in the design of the W3C XMLDsig and XKMS standards, and is listed as an author of XMLDsig versions 1.0, 1.1, and 2.0. He is a contributor to XKMS and a co-author of the OASIS standard WS-SECURITY.
Post-Quantum Cryptography
LaMacchia is a submitter of the Frodo post-quantum proposal to the NIST Post-Quantum Cryptography Standardization project, reflecting his team's sustained focus on developing cryptographic systems resilient to quantum computing threats.
Professional Leadership and Recognition
LaMacchia's standing in the broader computing and cryptographic research community is reflected in several leadership roles. He is a member of the Computing Community Consortium (CCC) Council. As of 2024, he is serving his third three-year term as Treasurer of the International Association for Cryptologic Research (IACR), having first joined the IACR Board of Directors in 2015 as General Chair of CRYPTO 2016.
He currently serves as Executive Director of the MPC Alliance, an industry organization focused on secure multiparty computation.
Civic Involvement
Beyond his technical work, LaMacchia has been active in civic and cultural organizations in the Seattle area. He serves as a member of the Board of Directors of Seattle Opera. He previously served for ten years on the board of directors of the Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF), including a term as president of SIFF during 2015–2016.
