Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Historical Cryptology (HistoCrypt 2024)
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10062/98421
Browse
Recent Submissions
Item Decipherment of a German encrypted letter sent from Sigismund Heusner von Wandersleben to Axel Oxenstierna in 1637(Tartu University Library, 2024) Waldispühl, Michelle; Kopal, Nils; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaWe present our work on an encrypted letter from the Thirty Years’ War written by the ally of the Swedish Empire, Sigismund Heusner von Wandersleben in 1637 and sent from Kassel to the Swedish High Lord Chancellor Axel Oxenstierna. We describe our analysis of the ciphertext including information on the cipher type, the process of cryptanalysis and challenges for the decipherment. We include the edition of the letter in the current state of decipherment and summarize its content.Item Post-quantum trails: an educational board game about post-quantum cryptography(Tartu University Library, 2024) Vakarjuk, Jelizaveta; Snetkov, Nikita; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaPost-quantum cryptography has gained more and more attention with the recent developments in quantum technology. There are already standard drafts for the novel post-quantum crypto systems and organisations are starting the process of migration to post-quantum cryptography. However, the migration process has many challenges that need to be taken into account. Moreover, the algorithms themselves have become more complicated, making it more difficult to educate people about post-quantum cryptography. We propose to use gamification to make it easier to explain the main challenges and obstacles as well as the main steps of the migration process to the non-cryptographic community. We propose a board game that is built using the gamification taxonomy of Toda et al. to ensure a smooth learning process.Item Cryptology and redaction – a strange symbiosis(Tartu University Library, 2024) Turing, Dermot; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaThis paper explores the relationship between cryptology and redaction. Redaction can be a frustration to historical cryptology research. Examples of redactions of historical papers relevant to cryptology are presented. It is concluded that the practice of redaction is often ineffective and the policy rationale behind redactions difficult to understand.Item Development of the Block Cipher LAMBDA1 in 1990(Tartu University Library, 2024) Stephan, Winfried; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaIn 1990, it became apparent that the German Democratic Republic (GDR) would leave the socialist community of states. This involved the gradual reduction of cooperation between the cipher services of these countries and the separation of cipher connections. LAMBDA1 is a block cipher developed in East Germany in 1990. It was designed for a cipher device for which a Soviet algorithm was originally intended. The plan was to use a predecessor of the Soviet block cipher algorithm, called GOST. This now had to be replaced. The aim was to provide a cipher algorithm that could not be easily decrypted by either the Warsaw Treaty countries states or the NATO countries. The background to these considerations was the assumption that the GDR would confirm to exist as an independent state for an extended period in a kind of transitional phase. The article describes the circumstances under which the LAMBDA1 algorithm was developed in just one month. It was based on the results of previous projects and was then intensively analyzed. The project was only abandoned when it became clear that the unification of the two German countries would take place at short notice and was imminent. The algorithm below is described only to the extent necessary to understand the development process.Item Subtle Signs of Scribal Intent in the Voynich Manuscript(Tartu University Library, 2024) Steckley, Andrew; Steckley, Noah; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaThis study explores the cryptic Voynich Manuscript, by looking for subtle signs of scribal intent hidden in overlooked features of the “Voynichese” script. The findings indicate that distributions of tokens within paragraphs vary significantly based on positions defined not only by elements intrinsic to the script such as paragraph and line boundaries but also by extrinsic elements, namely the hand-drawn illustrations of plants.Item The Keys of Diplomacy. The encrypted correspondence of Saxon-Polish Ministers Wackerbarth and Flemming 1700-1720.(Tartu University Library, 2024) Rous, Anne-Simone; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaIn the Great Northern War (1700-21), the two most important ministers of August II of Poland, Count of Flemming and Count of Wackerbarth, regularly exchanged reports and communications. Several passages of their correspondence are encrypted. Based on examples from the years 1700, 1706, 1715, 1717, and 1720s, this paper presents tentative results of the first phase of a project aimed at analyzing the entire correspondence from 1698 to 1728. Key questions concern differences in the structure of the ciphers and the efforts involved in decryption. New research perspectives are outlined, such as how ciphers are reused and how cryptography and steganography were combined. The examination of encrypted passages provides insights beyond the facade of 'August the Strong’.Item Musician Cryptologists: The Band of the USS California at Pearl Harbor and Beyond(Tartu University Library, 2024) Prescott, Kyle; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaWorking from the basement of US Pacific Fleet Headquarters in Pearl Harbor from 1941, a small team of navy cryptanalysts and linguists known as the Combat Intelligence Unit (CIU) provided the US Pacific Fleet Command with timely details of the capabilities and intentions of the Japanese Imperial Navy (IJN) in the Pacific. A substantial portion of the CIU was comprised of 20 enlisted musicians of US Navy Unit Band 16, the band of the USS California (BB-44), who survived the sinking of their ship in the attack of December 7, 1941. The musicians were recruited to Combat Intelligence, retrained to perform tasks related to the deciphering of Japanese Naval Code JN-25b, and contributed to that unit’s celebrated intelligence successes of 1942. As the war waged on, several musicians from Band 16 transferred to the Naval Communications Complex at Nebraska Avenue in Washington DC, and three eventually joined the National Security Agency (NSA) and served through the height of the Cold War.Item Bringing Cryptology into the Secondary Education Classroom(Tartu University Library, 2024) Murphy, Catherine; Wootton, Aaron; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaCryptology is becoming increasingly commonplace in undergraduate mathematics curricula as a way to motivate abstract mathematics. However, it is still typically absent in secondary education (students aged 11 to 18). In the following, we discuss why we think it would be advantageous to bring cryptology, both historical and modern, to the secondary education classroom. Additionally, we discuss some of the barriers we perceive to doing so and suggest, in our opinion, how they might be overcome. We illustrate implementation with a specific example of a topic in cryptology that could be included in a secondary education classroom.Item Cryptanalysis of Hagelin M-209 Cipher Machine with Artificial Neural Networks: A Known-Plaintext Attack(Tartu University Library, 2024) Mikhalev, Vasily; Kopal, Nils; Esslinger, Bernhard; Lampesberger, Harald; Hermann, Eckehard; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaThis paper introduces a machine learning (ML) approach for cryptanalysis of the ciphermachine Hagelin M-2091. For recovering the part of the secret key, represented by the wheel pins, we use Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) which take as input the pseudo-random displacement values generated by the internal mechanism of the machine. The displacement values can be easily obtained when ciphertext and plaintext are known. In particular, we are using several distinct ANNs, each recovering exactly one pin. Thus, to recover all the 131 pins, we utilize 131 model seach solving a binary classification problem. By experimenting with various ANN architectures and ciphertext lengths, ranging from 52 to 200 characters, we identified an ANN architecture that outperforms others in accuracy. This model, inspired by the architecture by Gohr used for attacking modern ciphers, achieved the following accuracies in recovering the pins of the first wheel of the machine: approximately 71% for 52-characters sequences, 88% for 104-characters, 96% for 200-characters. The first wheel has the largest size and hence represents the most complicated case. For the other wheels, these accuracies are slightly higher. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time when ANNs are used in a key-recovery attack against such machines.Item A Typology for Cipher Key Instructions in Early Modern Times(Tartu University Library, 2024) Megyesi, Beáta; Láng, Benedek; Kopal, Nils; Mikhalev, Vasily; Tudor, Crina; Waldispühl, Michelle; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaWe present an empirical study on instructions found in historical cipher keys dating back to early modern times in Europe. The study reveals that instructions in historical cipher keys are prevalent, covering a wide range of themes related to the practical application of ciphers. These include general information about the structure or usage of the cipher key, as well as specific instructions on their application. Being a hitherto neglected genre, these texts provide insight into the practice of cryptographic operations.Item Deciphering Historical Syllabic Ciphers(Tartu University Library, 2024) Lasry, George; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaHistorical ciphers with syllabic elements are significantly more challenging for cryptanalysis than regular homophonic ciphers. We present here a novel computerized technique which recovers significant parts of the keys, allowing for the remaining parts to be manually completed. We solved several previously undeciphered French, Spanish, and Italian syllabic ciphers, and we also evaluated the performance of this method against a series of additional historical syllabic ciphers.Item Sources of Alchemical Cryptography(Tartu University Library, 2024) Lang, Sarah; Zotov, Sergei; Piorko, Megan; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaThis paper presents an initial overview of cryptographic sources relating to alchemy, an area that remains largely unexplored. Alchemists and chymists frequently encrypted short passages relating to recipes and experiments, obscured content using exotic foreign languages or custom shorthand, and created unique symbol codes. A survey of manuscripts reveals the diversity of sources in over 100 instances of ciphering in alchemical contexts, where ciphers were only one of several methods traditionally used to maintain secrecy. It serves as a starting point for further research, demonstrating the wealth of archival material related to alchemical cryptography –a goldmine yet untapped.Item Decipherment of an Encrypted Letter from 1724 Found in UCL Special Collections’ Brougham Archive(Tartu University Library, 2024) Kopal, Nils; Makin, Katy; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaThis paper shows the decipherment of a 1724 encrypted letter, discovered recently in the Brougham Archive at University College London (UCL) Special Collections. The letter’s content hints at political intrigue and possibly relates to the Jacobite movement during George I’s reign in Great Britain. However, as all individuals mentioned in the letter are referred to bycode names, except for Madame de Prie, their true identities remain unknown to the authors. Therefore, any connection to the Jacobites remains speculative. The paper covers the cipher’s security, historical context, and unresolved inquiries surrounding the letter.Item Fake or real? A mysterious metal book on the market(Tartu University Library, 2024) Király, Levente Zoltán; Láng, Benedek; Tokai, Gábor; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaA newly emerged gilded folio metal book containing illustrations and unreadable character strings raises the question of authenticity. The article describes the object and examines on what grounds can be claimed with relative confidence that such a book is a forgery. The examination includes a structural analysis of the symbol sets and a comparison with similar, analogous metal books.Item Lost in Translation: Missing Background, Contextual Blindspots, and Editing Mishaps in Translated Intelligence Content(Tartu University Library, 2024) Jaskoski, Stephen; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaThis article examines the content as rendered by a small sample of intelligence reports issued by the UK Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) at Bletchley Park that address the initial indications in Italian communications of Italian regime change after Mussolini and considers how higher meaning in the texts may not have been fully appreciated in the context when they were written. The episode offers lessons in grasping context and significance in translated material.Item A new perspective on Dutch WWI codebreaking with its international ramifications(Tartu University Library, 2024) Jacobs, Bart; van Kampen, Florentijn; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaDuring the First World War, the Netherlands maintained a stance of carefully guarded neutrality. International tele communications in the form of telephone and telegraph were closely monitored and censored by so-called censorbureaus. In 2019 new files were declassified and released to the Dutch National Archive about the secensorship bureaus at Amsterdam and Rotterdam, covering 1914 to 1918. They provide detailed insight in the day-to-day business, the codebreaking efforts and specific cryptanalytic results. The material provides a completely new perspective on the genesis of modern Dutch codebreaking. This article gives a first survey of the development of these interception bureaus. It analyses their pioneering codebreaking activities and presents historic material on German diplomatic ciphers. Also, it provides new insight into the mysterious sale in 1919 of German codebooks from the Netherlands to the United States, as reported earlier in the literature.Item Supporting Historical Cryptology: The Decrypt Pipeline(Tartu University Library, 2024) Héder, Mihály; Fornés, Alicia; Kopal, Nils; Szigeti, Ferenc; Megyesi, Beáta; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaWe present a set of resources and tools to support research and development in the field of historical cryptology. The tools aim to support transcription and decipherment of ciphertexts, developed to work together in a pipeline. It encompasses cataloging these documents into the Decode database, which houses ciphers dating from the 14th century to 1965, transcription using both manual and AI-assisted methods, cryptanalysis, and subsequent historical and linguistic analysis to contextualize decrypted content. The project encounters challenges with the accuracy of automated transcription technologies and the necessity for significant user involvement in the transcription and analysis processes. These insights highlight the critical balance between technological innovation and the indispensable input of domain expertise in advancing the field of historical cryptology.Item Overlooked, forgotten, misunderstood: the "other" SIGINT in World War II(Tartu University Library, 2024) Hatch, David; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaFascination with ULTRA, the extraordinary World War II cryptologic intelligence, by historians and the public alike has eclipsed knowledge of and study of a second important cryptologic intelligence source. Whereas ULTRA provided senior Allied leaders with deep insight into enemy strategic thinking and plans, tactical cryptologic intelligence often gave combat commanders the vital information needed to win actual battles. Tactical cryptologic intelligence is less known and studied partly because it is in the shadow of ULTRA. In addition, fewer sources about the practice of tactical cryptologic intelligence have survived, and those readily available are fragmented and anecdotal. Tactical cryptologic intelligence merits further research and analysis if we are to have a fuller understanding of cryptology in practice and intelligence in the world war.Item The Philosophy of Secrecy: Towards a Historical Analysis of Cryptography, Privacy, and Information Organization(Tartu University Library, 2024) Halpin, Harry; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, BeátaThe philosophical definition of privacy is conflated with the secrecy of individual life as guaranteed by the nation-state. We trace the origin of this conception of the nation-state as the guarantor of liberal privacy, and in parallel investigate the claim (by Schmitt) that the historical origin of the modern nation-state is given by the keeping of secrets. From these contradictory claims, we show how the phenomenon of state secrecy and the surveillance of citizens is inherent in the historical development of sovereignty. Finally, we demonstrate the centrality of the history of cryptography to the philosophy of history.Item On the tracks of Félix-Marie Delastelle(Tartu University Library, 2024) Géraud-Stewart, Rémi; Naccache, David; Waldispühl, Michelle; Megyesi, Beáta“Can not find any info on Delastelle— Nothing on record in this country.” (William Friedman, 18 Jan 1955, NSA Archives A63734) Following these words, the then-director of the US National Security Agency hailed contacts in Europe, hoping that someone would fill in this missing information. The initial inquiry was sent to Friedman by amateur American cryptographer William Maxwell Bowers; in 1963, Bowers would publish under a pseudonym all that he could find on the matter (The Cryptogram 1963, preserved under reference VF 54-30 at the US National Cryptologic Museum). Since this document, which had a very limited audience, almost no new information on Delastelle was published, and indeed most of the information available widely today on Delastelle is at best fragmentary. In this paper we reopen that case, reviewing information about the life and work of Félix-Marie Delastelle, establishing data overlooked by earlier historians, correcting several oft-repeated errors and bringing novel documents to public awareness.