Modern-day spying: sometimes old technology is more secure
Number stations, such as the "Lincolnshire Poacher," are historic espionage tools dating back to the mid-1960s. Despite the Cold War's end, these stations persist, with increased activity noted since the mid-2010s, raising questions about their relevance today.
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Number stations, like the infamous "Lincolnshire Poacher," have been a staple of espionage communication since the mid-1960s. These stations broadcast coded messages over shortwave frequencies, believed to be used by spy agencies like MI6 to communicate with field agents. Despite the end of the Cold War, many number stations continue to operate, with increased activity noted since the mid-2010s, including broadcasts in voice, Morse code, and digital signals. Priyom.org tracks these stations, highlighting Russia as a prominent user. The persistence of these old-school broadcasts raises questions about their relevance in an era dominated by advanced technologies.
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20 commentsThey're all on the Internet Archive to read free, e.g. https://archive.md/Ed12X
Just makes me rethink does everything thing need internet access. Sometimes perhaps simple safe and secure may fit better. Kind of off topic of this article but the concept just kind of got me thinking out loud.
Clandestine communications in cyber-denied Environments: Numbers stations and radio in the 21st century
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/18335330.2023.2...
I like how some malware hides in plain sight and relays through google analytics.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Conet_Project
audio now free on the internet archive:
Actually the one interesting point made is that nobody can track whether you're tuning into a particular station. On a network, there has to be some traceable path of connections between the transmitter and receiver: even if the message is hidden in some other content or transmitted through a bunch of proxies, that traceable flow of data must exist. It makes me wonder how common it is to open ephemeral p2p connections over shortwave to transmit data between two computers - I'm sure someone's thought of it, and I think I brought it up one time during a quant firm system design interview.
some youtubers are pushing LoRa but its hardly secure or encrypted
creating your own number station requires shortwave broadcast which takes up a ton of power and your station is known
the only way to break 5E is good old paper with one time pad encryption with dead drops but its hardly efficient
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