Forensic Codebreaking Workshop

Lecturer: Klaus Schmeh

Zoom

Join the following Zoom call to connect with crypto expert Elonka Dunin (also known as Nola Kaye in Dan Brown’s novel The Lost Symbol):

Meeting ID: 832 4386 1507

Passcode: see slide or ask host

List of over 100 ciphertexts related to crimes

This is the largest publicly available collection of its kind.

https://c.web.de/@357437655358637053/2ZwEC69lRO2e1pmuwc7ZbA

CrypTool 2

CrypTool 2 is a free crypto and codebreaking software for Windows (.NET required). Among other things, it supports frequency analysis and word pattern search.

https://www.cryptool.org/en/ct2/downloads

CrypTool alternatives (no installation required)

Frequency analysis: https://multidec.web-lab.at/lf.php

Word pattern search: https://design215.com/toolbox/wordpattern.php

Please note

This workshop is about paper-and-pencil encryption only. If you’re interested in crimes involving modern cryptography, including software such as PGP and VeryCrypt, check here or here.

Literature

Elonka Dunin, Klaus Schmeh: Codebreaking: A Practical Guide. Robinson, 2020

This book covers the breaking of classical ciphers with modern means. It’s the best choice if you want to deepen what you have learned in the workshop.

Gary Klivans: Gang Secret Codes: Deciphered. Police and Fire Publishing, 2013

Excellent book that covers gang codes and how they are broken.

Helen Fouché Gaines: Cryptanalysis. Courier Corporation, 1939

The classic about codebreaking, but written long before the computer age.

David Kahn: The Codebreakers. MacMillan, 1996

This work is considered the classic about the history of cryptography.