February 10

The Enigma Machine

Breaking the Ciphers

Speaker: Jason Jaskolka

Abstract:
The Enigma machine had the confidence of the German forces who depended on its security. It turns out that this confidence was misplaced as the Enigma ciphers were broken as early as 1933. In this presentation, we look at the story of how the Enigma ciphers were broken by the Allied forces. We examine the mathematical solution to the Enigma ciphers proposed by Marian Rejewski. We also look at the work of Alan Turing at Bletchley Park. Ultimately, we show how the ciphers were broken and discuss the lessons learned from the folly of placing absolute trust in the Enigma Machine.