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 Post subject: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 16:52 
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Heavy Metal Tough Guy

Joined: 31st Mar, 2008
Posts: 6607
There must be some Crypto Nerds on this forum.

http://www.gchq.gov.uk/Press/Pages/Pige ... grave.aspx

Man finds secret code from a dead pigeon in his chimney - probably sent over from Europe by the British Army. However, the boffins at GCHQ are flummoxed! Can you, dear reader, apply your skill and judgement to help solve this tricky problem that has flummoxed the best minds in the business? Can you decipher the crappy, low-res scan that GCHQ have stuck up? Can you solves the clues and find the Golden Hare?


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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 16:57 
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Ticket to Ride World Champion

Joined: 18th Apr, 2008
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I'd take it down the bookies and see if they'll pay out, if I was them.

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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 16:58 
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baron of techno

Joined: 30th Mar, 2008
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Enemy.. Hawk.. Patrols 8)


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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 16:59 
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Isn't that lovely?

Joined: 30th Mar, 2008
Posts: 11166
Location: Devon
Woo!

Malc

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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 17:00 
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Heavy Metal Tough Guy

Joined: 31st Mar, 2008
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I reckon they've got the signature wrong - I don't think that's "W Stot Sjt", but rather "W Stf Sjt" - as in Staff Sergeant. That doesn't help decode it at all though.


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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 17:05 
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Heavy Metal Tough Guy

Joined: 31st Mar, 2008
Posts: 6607
Also, if the pigeon was registered in 1937 as they suggest, that would mean it had been about for 7 years by D-Day. Isn't that quite old for a pigeon?


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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 17:10 
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ugvm'er at heart...

Joined: 4th Mar, 2010
Posts: 22391
When I first saw this reported, I didn't understand quite how they expected to break the code. You need mistakes and comparisons to allow you to crack these codes, a single short coded message on it's own is impossible I suspect.
The enigma code, for examples, was cracked because the German operators were lazy and didn't always advance the wheels, and one of them sent the exact same message twice in a row. Plus they used key repeated phrases so there were patterns to look for from each operator.


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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 17:16 
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Hibernating Druid

Joined: 27th Mar, 2008
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Malc wrote:
Woo!

Malc

Coo! Coo!

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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 17:17 
SupaMod
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Est. 1978

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It says "We should stop using this pigeon - it seems lazy."

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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 17:28 
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Heavy Metal Tough Guy

Joined: 31st Mar, 2008
Posts: 6607
You could probably brute force a WWII code nowadays if you new the encryption type. The British used a enigma-like code called TypeX, although I'm not sure if that message would be long enough to be certain. If it's a One Time Pad they're stumped though.


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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 17:31 
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Ticket to Ride World Champion

Joined: 18th Apr, 2008
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Yeah, surely we knew what sort of codes we were using, i am amazed that we GCHQ can't crack it, and slightly perturbed that they would admit to such!

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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 17:53 
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Slightly Brackish

Joined: 28th Jan, 2011
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I thought this was going to be another Scum thread :(

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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 17:54 
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ugvm'er at heart...

Joined: 4th Mar, 2010
Posts: 22391
It's in no way a long enough code to crack though, without known keys, comparisons and errors, all you can do is brute force, and for that you need a lot more characters.


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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 18:23 
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Isn't that lovely?

Joined: 30th Mar, 2008
Posts: 11166
Location: Devon
Zardoz wrote:
Malc wrote:
Woo!

Malc

Coo! Coo!


The woo was because Kalmar had posted for the first time in about 6 months!

Malc

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 Post subject: Re: Code Breakers!
PostPosted: Sat Nov 24, 2012 10:11 
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Sleepyhead

Joined: 30th Mar, 2008
Posts: 27354
Location: Kidbrooke
Yeah, looks like a one time pad, which is unbreakable for messages of this length.

It also looks like a recruitment drive from GCHQ.

Also, also... KALMAR!

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