[HN Gopher] Secret diplomatic message deciphered after 350 years
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       Secret diplomatic message deciphered after 350 years
        
       Author : robin_reala
       Score  : 69 points
       Date   : 2025-10-16 15:56 UTC (2 days ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (www.nationalarchives.gov.uk)
 (TXT) w3m dump (www.nationalarchives.gov.uk)
        
       | butlike wrote:
       | It's fascinating to me that the keywords were further encoded
       | such that even if the message was deciphered, the strategic plans
       | could not be acted upon.
        
         | avidiax wrote:
         | It was quite common to have a codebook that might list several
         | numbers or words used to substitute for places, individuals,
         | actions, etc.
         | 
         | These also existed for corporate entities. A concern might have
         | their own codebook such that the telegraph office would not be
         | privy to their internal business.
         | 
         | They would also use codebooks as a type of compression, since
         | the telegraph company charged less for sending English words as
         | opposed to enciphered characters, and obviously, there are many
         | uncommon words that could substitute for longer common phrases.
         | 
         | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codebook
         | 
         | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commercial_code_(communication...
        
       | Molitor5901 wrote:
       | I sat through a briefing last week about quantum encryption and
       | the threat that quantum computing poses to encryption in use
       | today. It was stressed that nation states are hoovering up
       | encrypted data now in order to decrypt later with quantum
       | computing. Much the same way America decrypted old soviet
       | encrypted data. I wonder if it will take as long and if anyone
       | will still be alive to make use of that data.
        
         | fpoling wrote:
         | If quantum computing would progress just like in the last 30
         | years it may take 300 years before it can be useful.
         | 
         | https://eprint.iacr.org/2025/1237.pdf
        
           | lbourdages wrote:
           | Thanks for sharing this, great read.
        
           | wat10000 wrote:
           | If you know a better way to factor 35, I'd like to hear it.
        
       | AtlasBarfed wrote:
       | .... Satoshi?
        
         | righthand wrote:
         | Not a cryptologist, not cryptology.
        
         | CalChris wrote:
         | Different Satoshi.
        
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       (page generated 2025-10-18 23:00 UTC)