FBI issues a new code breaking challenge
The FBI posts its annual code-breaking challenge on its Web site; this is the longest code-breaking challenge to date; the FBI says that the code-breaking task is similar to work being done in its labs
The FBI has posted code-breaking challenges on its Web site. It has done so a few times before, and on 24 December it issued a new one.
The agency explains that unraveling the code and reveal its secret message is similar to the work of “cryptanalysts” being done in the FBI Laboratory. In the latest quiz, the agency switched gears a bit, using pictogram symbols based on Native American motifs. With more than fifty words to decipher, it is the FBI’s longest code-breaking challenge so far.
The authors also note that for the first time, they are also posting the answer (see the bottom of the Web page) in case would-be code breakers are stumped.
If you want a primer on basic cipher systems and how to break them, see the article “Analysis of Criminal Codes and Ciphers.” If you have an interested youngster at home, the agency suggests they start with the code on our Kids’ page.
