Codebreaking: A Practical Guide - Softcover

Dunin, Elonka; Schmeh, Klaus

Softcover

ISBN 10: 147214421X ISBN 13: 9781472144218

Publisher: Robinson, 2020

Synopsis

''The best book on codebreaking I have read'', SIR DERMOT TURING

''Brings back the joy I felt when I first read about these things as a kid'', PHIL ZIMMERMANN

''This is at last the single book on codebreaking that you must have. If you are not yet addicted to cryptography, this book will get you addicted. Read, enjoy, and test yourself on history''s great still-unbroken messages!'' JARED DIAMOND is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Guns, Germs, and Steel; Collapse; and other international bestsellers

''This is THE book about codebreaking. Very concise, very inclusive and easy to read'', ED SCHEIDT

''Riveting'', MIKE GODWIN

''Approachable and compelling'', GLEN MIRANKER


This practical guide to breaking codes and solving cryptograms by two world experts, Elonka Dunin and Klaus Schmeh, describes the most common encryption techniques along with methods to detect and break them. It fills a gap left by outdated or very basic-level books.

This guide also covers many unsolved messages. The Zodiac Killer sent four encrypted messages to the police. One was solved; the other three were not. Beatrix Potter''s diary and the Voynich Manuscript were both encrypted - to date, only one of the two has been deciphered. The breaking of the so-called Zimmerman Telegram during the First World War changed the course of history. Several encrypted wartime military messages remain unsolved to this day. Tens of thousands of other encrypted messages, ranging from simple notes created by children to encrypted postcards and diaries in people''s attics, are known to exist. Breaking these cryptograms fascinates people all over the world, and often gives people insight into the lives of their ancestors. Geocachers, computer gamers and puzzle fans also require codebreaking skills.

This is a book both for the growing number of enthusiasts obsessed with real-world mysteries, and also fans of more challenging puzzle books. Many people are obsessed with trying to solve famous crypto mysteries, including members of the Kryptos community (led by Elonka Dunin) trying to solve a decades-old cryptogram on a sculpture at the centre of CIA Headquarters; readers of the novels of Dan Brown as well as Elonka Dunin''s The Mammoth Book of Secret Code Puzzles (UK)/The Mammoth Book of Secret Codes and Cryptograms (US); historians who regularly encounter encrypted documents; perplexed family members who discover an encrypted postcard or diary in an ancestor''s effects; law-enforcement agents who are confronted by encrypted messages, which also happens more often than might be supposed; members of the American Cryptogram Association (ACA); geocachers (many caches involve a crypto puzzle); puzzle fans; and computer gamers (many games feature encryption puzzles).

The book''s focus is very much on breaking pencil-and-paper, or manual, encryption methods. Its focus is also largely on historical encryption. Although manual encryption has lost much of its importance due to computer technology, many people are still interested in deciphering messages of this kind.

About this title

About the Authors

ELONKA DUNIN is an American video-game developer and cryptologist. Bestselling author Dan Brown named Nola Kaye, a character in his novel, The Lost Symbol, after her. Elonka has published a book of exercises on classical cryptography and maintains cryptography-related websites about topics such as the world's most famous unsolved codes and Kryptos, a sculpture at the Central Intelligence Agency containing an encrypted message. She is considered the leading Kryptos expert in the world. Elonka is a member of the United States National Cryptologic Museum Foundation's Board and frequently gives lectures on the subject of cryptography.

KLAUS SCHMEH is one of the world's leading experts on the history of encryption. He has published thirteen books about encryption technology (mostly written in German), as well as over 200 articles, twenty-five scientific publications and 1,200 blog posts, which makes him the most published cryptology author in the world. He is a member of the editorial board of the scientific magazine, Cryptologia, and a frequent speaker at encryption conferences in Europe and the USA. He has given presentations at the NSA Cryptologic History Symposium, the Charlotte International Cryptologic Symposium, the RSA Conference in San Francisco and many more. He is known for his entertaining presentation style involving self-drawn cartoons and Lego models.

From the Back Cover

Two of the world's leading authorities on codebreaking reveal their techniques and tricks - interwoven with a treasure trove of authentic stories about famous code-cracking successes, and many still unsolved encryption mysteries.


Elonka Dunin, codebreaker and an expert on the world's most famous unsolved codes, and Klaus Schmeh, one of the world's most prolific crypto-bloggers, describe the best-known traditional encryption techniques along with powerful methods to break them.


In this book, you can learn about:


· Beatrix Potter's encrypted diary, and how to read it.
· The Zodiac Killer's four encrypted messages and how one of these was broken.
· What to do with encrypted letters, postcards, and diaries in order to be able to analyse and decipher such documents - numerous examples are provided.
· How to find free software tools that help you to break the majority of pencil-and-paper ciphers.
· Many of the exceptions, i.e., encrypted documents that have so far withstood all attempts to solve them, including the Voynich Manuscript, the Kryptos inscription K4, and the three remaining messages of the Zodiac Killer.


This is the perfect guide for anyone who is interested in breaking authentic codes and ciphers. It is ideal for historians and law-enforcement agents who might be confronted by encrypted messages, as well as for puzzle fans, geocachers, members of the American Cryptogram Association (ACA), and readers of Dan Brown's novels.

Edition details

• Publisher: Robinson
• Publication date: 2020
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 147214421X
• ISBN 13: 9781472144218
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 528