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General Category => Off the Record => Topic started by: Brazen on December 01, 2011, 06:25:59 AM

Title: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Brazen on December 01, 2011, 06:25:59 AM
The UK's spy centre GCHQ has launched a codebreaking challenge on social networks. Have a crack (see what I did there?) at it here:
http://www.canyoucrackit.co.uk/ (http://www.canyoucrackit.co.uk/)

No spoilers if you break it!
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Josquius on December 01, 2011, 07:05:51 AM
Is that in hex?
My hex reading skills have gone to pot.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Razgovory on December 01, 2011, 07:17:53 AM
I bet what's his name could do it.  You know that guy who used to own the board.  I can't remember his name.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Grey Fox on December 01, 2011, 07:45:44 AM
Ank?
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Razgovory on December 01, 2011, 07:57:53 AM
Quote from: Grey Fox on December 01, 2011, 07:45:44 AM
Ank?

That's it.  For a minute I could only remember his real name.  He hasn't said exactly what he does but he's left hints that he's into code breaking.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Grey Fox on December 01, 2011, 08:15:49 AM
He's a Spy!
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Razgovory on December 01, 2011, 08:16:33 AM
Me or him.  If it's him, well duh.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Grey Fox on December 01, 2011, 08:20:12 AM
Quote from: Razgovory on December 01, 2011, 08:16:33 AM
Me or him.  If it's him, well duh.

Him. You, you're the handler. You have the bestest of cover.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Admiral Yi on December 01, 2011, 08:23:26 AM
Le plus meilleur.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: DGuller on December 01, 2011, 09:00:53 AM
WTF is this supposed to be?  It's hard to break a code if you don't even know what the end result should look like.  Is the end result a letter, a word, a gibberish number/letter combination, or a sentence?
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Slargos on December 01, 2011, 09:17:15 AM
Quote from: DGuller on December 01, 2011, 09:00:53 AM
WTF is this supposed to be?  It's hard to break a code if you don't even know what the end result should look like.  Is the end result a letter, a word, a gibberish number/letter combination, or a sentence?

:lol:

I guess you're not the target audience for this.  :hmm:
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: DGuller on December 01, 2011, 09:23:21 AM
Is this a breakable code, or is this one of those things where you challenge the public to solve something that has baffled the experts?
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Brazen on December 01, 2011, 09:50:23 AM
Quote from: DGuller on December 01, 2011, 09:23:21 AM
Is this a breakable code, or is this one of those things where you challenge the public to solve something that has baffled the experts?
It's breakable. the BBC shows teh page you get taken to when you get it right.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Brazen on December 01, 2011, 09:51:03 AM
Quote from: DGuller on December 01, 2011, 09:00:53 AM
WTF is this supposed to be?  It's hard to break a code if you don't even know what the end result should look like.  Is the end result a letter, a word, a gibberish number/letter combination, or a sentence?
"Enter keyword" might just be a clue.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: DontSayBanana on December 01, 2011, 09:59:08 AM
Quote from: DGuller on December 01, 2011, 09:00:53 AM
WTF is this supposed to be?  It's hard to break a code if you don't even know what the end result should look like.  Is the end result a letter, a word, a gibberish number/letter combination, or a sentence?

That's one of the characteristics of good encryption- that it doesn't describe itself.

I'm taking a crack at it.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: DontSayBanana on December 01, 2011, 10:40:54 AM
Throwing some descriptions of what I'm doing in here, just for shits and giggles.  Right now, I'm counting off the individual values.  That should tell me what kind of data I'm looking at- if there are 26 values, I can be pretty sure that it's alphabetic characters, 27 probably means alpha plus spaces, and 36 and 37 would suggest the same thing with the inclusion of Arabic digits.

EDIT: Of course, this is a first pass, and I'm assuming a direct cipher.  There are ways (usually involving modulo) to map the same value to multiple characters, depending on context.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: PDH on December 01, 2011, 10:41:47 AM
"F U Jaron"

What kind of lame code conceals that?
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: fhdz on December 01, 2011, 10:52:54 AM
Quote from: DGuller on December 01, 2011, 09:00:53 AM
WTF is this supposed to be?  It's hard to break a code if you don't even know what the end result should look like.  Is the end result a letter, a word, a gibberish number/letter combination, or a sentence?

I think you meant to post this on Yahoo.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: DontSayBanana on December 01, 2011, 10:54:10 AM
Another observation... 41 and 42 are the only couplets that appear more than three times in a row, and always to the end of the line.  That probably means they're bloat characters to fill up space.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Grey Fox on December 01, 2011, 11:00:24 AM
I'm pretty sure first page is Assembly code.

Also it's step 1 of 3.

Also, the page is feeding out asp. Could be easier to SQL inject it & hack the answer.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: DontSayBanana on December 01, 2011, 11:25:46 AM
Quote from: Grey Fox on December 01, 2011, 11:00:24 AM
I'm pretty sure first page is Assembly code.

Also it's step 1 of 3.

Also, the page is feeding out asp. Could be easier to SQL inject it & hack the answer.

Actually, it reads like an 802.xx packet capture, come to think of it.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Habbaku on December 01, 2011, 11:33:53 AM
Quote from: fahdiz on December 01, 2011, 10:52:54 AM
Quote from: DGuller on December 01, 2011, 09:00:53 AM
WTF is this supposed to be?  It's hard to break a code if you don't even know what the end result should look like.  Is the end result a letter, a word, a gibberish number/letter combination, or a sentence?

I think you meant to post this on Yahoo.

:lol:
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: DGuller on December 01, 2011, 11:57:46 AM
Quote from: fahdiz on December 01, 2011, 10:52:54 AM
Quote from: DGuller on December 01, 2011, 09:00:53 AM
WTF is this supposed to be?  It's hard to break a code if you don't even know what the end result should look like.  Is the end result a letter, a word, a gibberish number/letter combination, or a sentence?

I think you meant to post this on Yahoo.
:face: Douche.  Err, I mean touche.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: Ideologue on December 01, 2011, 12:10:22 PM
QuoteSo you wanna be a codebreaker

No.  Citybreaker.
Title: Re: So you wanna be a codebreaker?
Post by: fhdz on December 01, 2011, 12:14:52 PM
Quote from: DGuller on December 01, 2011, 11:57:46 AM
:face: Douche.  Err, I mean touche.

No worries. Glass houses, blah blah blah.