Open main menu
Home
Random
Recent changes
Special pages
Community portal
Preferences
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Incubator escapee wiki
Search
User menu
Talk
Dark mode
Contributions
Create account
Log in
Editing
Cryptanalysis
(section)
Warning:
You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you
log in
or
create an account
, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
Anti-spam check. Do
not
fill this in!
====Indicator==== With reciprocal machine ciphers such as the [[Lorenz cipher]] and the [[Enigma machine]] used by [[Nazi Germany]] during [[World War II]], each message had its own key. Usually, the transmitting operator informed the receiving operator of this message key by transmitting some plaintext and/or ciphertext before the enciphered message. This is termed the ''indicator'', as it indicates to the receiving operator how to set his machine to decipher the message.<ref>{{Harvnb|Churchhouse|2002|pp=33, 34}}</ref> Poorly designed and implemented indicator systems allowed first [[Biuro Szyfrów|Polish cryptographers]]<ref>{{Harvnb|Budiansky|2000|pp=97–99}}</ref> and then the British cryptographers at [[Bletchley Park]]<ref>{{Harvnb|Calvocoressi|2001|p=66}}</ref> to break the Enigma cipher system. Similar poor indicator systems allowed the British to identify ''depths'' that led to the diagnosis of the [[Lorenz cipher|Lorenz SZ40/42]] cipher system, and the comprehensive breaking of its messages without the cryptanalysts seeing the cipher machine.<ref name="Tutte 1998">{{Harvnb|Tutte|1998}}</ref>
Edit summary
(Briefly describe your changes)
By publishing changes, you agree to the
Terms of Use
, and you irrevocably agree to release your contribution under the
CC BY-SA 4.0 License
and the
GFDL
. You agree that a hyperlink or URL is sufficient attribution under the Creative Commons license.
Cancel
Editing help
(opens in new window)