Ciphers and Codes, Oh My!

In previous posts we’ve looked at encryption and decryption, and talked about how messages are obscured, but at a very basic level, have you heard of ciphers and codes? Have you ever wondered about the difference between the two? On a recent visit to Bletchley Park I came across a notice with the image shown … Continue reading Ciphers and Codes, Oh My!

C is for…

CAT5 We don’t really hear this term very often any more, but it refers to probably the most common form of network cabling in offices and homes over the last 15-20 years. It’s the cable you may connect from your home router to your laptop if you don’t use Wi-Fi – it’s almost certainly been … Continue reading C is for…

Encryption

A while back I mentioned in my post on Backups that we needed to talk about Encryption, so here we are. First of all, I need to explain what encryption is. At its simplest, its a way of making a message unreadable by anyone other than the intended recipient.   I should also point out … Continue reading Encryption

The Code Book

Having seen Simon Singh explaining how the Enigma machine worked while at a conference, I picked up this book. It charts the history of codes and ciphers from well before Roman times to the current day, and shows how they have developed over time. It was also very useful to read the difference between code … Continue reading The Code Book