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Rust is probably a bazillion times safer, but there's always a way to sneak in bugs if you try, and programmers are good at that. It's definitely possible for

Rust is probably a bazillion times safer, but there's always a way to sneak in bugs if you try, and programmers are good at that. It's definitely possible for an individual do this stuff, if it can be mathematically proven(My math level is a bit below grade school algebra so I can't really evaluate it there), proofs don't lie, regardless of who proved them, they are in themselves a way better authority than any human. But anyone who truly does learn all that IS one of those rare crypto experts, and there aren't that many. Who can code review? If someone leaves the team, does anyone else have that level of skill to be able to maintain it? It might be worth learning crypto for the same reason as any of the other random things they say coders should know, like Haskell and LISP or the dreaded FORTH though.

throwaway81523 5y ago
Fair enough, it's a specialized area, just like compilers, numerics, machine learning, web front ends, or any amount of other stuff. It's not for everyone. But you don't have to be DJB or Einstein to study it and gain some ability. For that matter, thousands of people every year go to medical school, complete a residency, and become board certified brain surgeons. They're not Einstein either. Crypto implementation isn't nearly as difficult I'm sure. And machine learning is far more mathematically demanding than basic crypto. As for threat models, NaCl and OpenSSL don't magically mitigate against currently unknown threats. Really paranoid crypto is usually wrapped in HSM's (electromagnetically shielded, tamper resistant etc.) in the hope of blocking some of that.