edu-sphincs

An educational TypeScript implementation of SLH-DSA (Stateless Hash-based Digital Signature Algorithm) as specified in NIST FIPS 205 (formerly known as SPHINCS+). It has not been audited and must not be used in production.

This implementation was initially developed for visualization as part of my master's thesis and later factored out with the help of a generative AI coding assistant.

Features

• Post-Quantum Cryptography: Implements the NIST standardized SLH-DSA signature scheme
• All NIST Parameter Sets: Supports both SHAKE-based and SHA2-based NIST FIPS 205 parameter sets
• Type Safe: Written in TypeScript with full type definitions
• Event System: Built-in event emitter for algorithm monitoring and visualization

Installation

npm install edu-sphincs

Quick Start

import { SLHDSA } from 'edu-sphincs';

// Initialize with a parameter set
const slhDSA = new SLHDSA('SLH-DSA-SHAKE-128s');

// Generate a key pair
const keyPair = await slhDSA.keygen();
if (!keyPair) {
  throw new Error('Key generation failed');
}

const { SK, PK } = keyPair;

// Sign a message
const message = new Uint8Array([1, 2, 3, 4, 5]);
const signature = await slhDSA.sign(message, SK);

// Verify the signature
const isValid = await slhDSA.verify(message, signature, PK);
console.log('Signature valid:', isValid);

Parameter Sets

All 12 NIST FIPS 205 parameter sets are supported, both SHAKE-based and SHA2-based:

• SLH-DSA-SHAKE-128s / SLH-DSA-SHA2-128s - Small signatures
• SLH-DSA-SHAKE-128f / SLH-DSA-SHA2-128f - Fast verification
• SLH-DSA-SHAKE-192s / SLH-DSA-SHA2-192s - Small signatures, higher security
• SLH-DSA-SHAKE-192f / SLH-DSA-SHA2-192f - Fast verification, higher security
• SLH-DSA-SHAKE-256s / SLH-DSA-SHA2-256s - Small signatures, highest security
• SLH-DSA-SHAKE-256f / SLH-DSA-SHA2-256f - Fast verification, highest security

Event Monitoring

The library supports event emission for monitoring and visualization purposes. You can pass a custom event emitter when creating an SLHDSA instance:

import { SLHDSA } from 'edu-sphincs';

const slhDSA = new SLHDSA('SLH-DSA-SHAKE-128s', undefined, {
  emit: (event) => {
    console.log(`${event.type}:`, event.data);
  }
});

The event emitter is designed to integrate with visualization frameworks for real-time algorithm monitoring.

API Reference

Core Class

• SLHDSA - Main signature algorithm implementation with methods for key generation, signing, and verification

Utilities

• ADRS - Address structure for hash function calls
• Parameter management - Access to all NIST parameter sets
• Hash functions - SHAKE, SHA wrappers

Development

Dependencies are installed inside a Docker container, so nothing needs to be installed locally:

docker compose build              # build the dev image (installs dependencies)
docker compose run --rm dev npm test          # run the fast test suite
docker compose run --rm dev npm run test:full # run the full test suite (all parameter sets)
docker compose run --rm dev npm run build:check
docker compose run --rm dev npm run build

Security Notice

This is an educational implementation for learning post-quantum cryptography concepts. While it follows the NIST FIPS 205 specification, it is not suitable for production use.

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

References

• NIST FIPS 205: Stateless Hash-Based Digital Signature Standard
• SPHINCS+ specification
• Master's thesis (Croatian)