Schlusselzustz 40 Cryptographic Unit (SZ40, also known as “TUNNY”)
During World War II the German Army used the SZ40 for high-level communications. It provided on-line encryption and decryption of messages and was capable of handling large volumes of traffic at high speed.
Built by the German firm Lorenz, the SZ40 depended on wheels for its encryption/decryption. It encrypted elements of the electrically generated “Baudot Code” used in normal telegraphic transmissions (e.g., teletype). By adding the numeric representations of two letters together, a third letter was created. The wheels generated the key. Although highly complex, the use of wheels meant the key was not random.
Seen at the National Security Agency’s National Cryptologic Museum, Fort Meade, Maryland.
An observation from someone who is not an expert in cryptography: Cryptography is about converting order (a written or spoken message) to disorder (an encrypted communication with no clear patterns) and vice versa. Thus, I find it interesting that a number of tools for cryptography—especially prior to the digital age—have a physical order or pattern.
Schlusselzustz 40 Cryptographic Unit (SZ40, also known as “TUNNY”)
During World War II the German Army used the SZ40 for high-level communications. It provided on-line encryption and decryption of messages and was capable of handling large volumes of traffic at high speed.
Built by the German firm Lorenz, the SZ40 depended on wheels for its encryption/decryption. It encrypted elements of the electrically generated “Baudot Code” used in normal telegraphic transmissions (e.g., teletype). By adding the numeric representations of two letters together, a third letter was created. The wheels generated the key. Although highly complex, the use of wheels meant the key was not random.
Seen at the National Security Agency’s National Cryptologic Museum, Fort Meade, Maryland.
An observation from someone who is not an expert in cryptography: Cryptography is about converting order (a written or spoken message) to disorder (an encrypted communication with no clear patterns) and vice versa. Thus, I find it interesting that a number of tools for cryptography—especially prior to the digital age—have a physical order or pattern.