Zodiackillersite.com

This type of transposition cipher is simple to make. pen and paper and scissors. No computers. Write out your plain text on grid paper cut either rows or columns. put it back together in a different format (many options) and you have a jumbled code. the above columns odds evens one shift up gives near period 19 with very high bigram result. no solve but it interests me because of its simplicity.
may be i will try odds evens columns then cut into odds evens rows.. a double transposition..sooo many options.

Mr lowe wrote:This type of transposition cipher is simple to make. pen and paper and scissors. No computers. Write out your plain text on grid paper cut either rows or columns. put it back together in a different format (many options) and you have a jumbled code. the above columns odds evens one shift up gives near period 19 with very high bigram result. no solve but it interests me because of its simplicity.
may be i will try odds evens columns then cut into odds evens rows.. a double transposition..sooo many options.

Cool idea. Can anyone make a cipher like that to see if it solves?

Thank you, Mr. lowe. I like the idea because it is indeed very easy to do with pen and paper and yet very effective. But as you said, there are a lot of ways to arrange the columns. If Zodiac did it the way shown or similar, I think he chose a straight-forward pattern. Like on the screenshot or something like that. I always have the hope that he wanted z340 to be solved. In this case he hopefully chose a pattern that can be guessed.

Jarlve wrote:Cool idea. Can anyone make a cipher like that to see if it solves?

I'll try it today or tomorrow.

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator

Here's a cipher based on Mr lowe's idea:

Code: Select all

QoXd=YKAKh;j::acr
UqxKjvSULEwu3y:hI
+v5hMXco0PFY9:Cj5
87QRAs;;ufD4aax5q
cNCJ3LE5yv:h7+;=b
iiw27lAp0dNeosdeX
PinSpfJc9Zz;2p=C;
adqNLKDITua7YXxI;
eP4:5k=yE==kwj+G;
FXa8=XHZI;hVrJLct
CPZdDpnI5RhitttZf
TnuAQNqc7dPELq:aV
C=Mwuby8kA5UhxcCs
Qp:euF9yjpDJqUlVi
RN+P:jiDPf5tuEYsh
bUDpT9RoQAew:cuCi
TnZU;d=0=XaJ=5:u8
hF=iv9ggS1sIza;K+
NBU0rHzP4l;wEIcwf
T;Gl:hlcgVapTYhll


I just started the transposition solver of AZDecrypt, but removed the two options "L-Route" and "Spiral". Otherwise I left all settings on default.
The cipher has a bigram peak at P19 and the Deceptive Periods test seems to confirm this (little noise).
Mr lowe, your idea is really great. Let's see if AZDecrypt can crack that.

No solve yet...

By the way: the "one column up" after odd/even columns is almost the same like a diagonal transposition which is almost the same like p18. I think I've posted something similar a year ago but I can't find the thread.
As you can see, there are many possibilities (Odd/Even columns and then P18, Diagonal or one column up), which are very similar in the core. The resulting ciphers don't differ much, but the small difference can be the boundary between "solvable" and "unsolvable". I like your idea more and more...z340 could be based on such a creative approach.

Here is a weak solve (overnight run):

Code: Select all

Score: 20708.48 IOC: 0.07133 Multiplicity: 0.18235
Repeats: 453 PC-cycles: 2515 Hours: 7.05

Skytale(UTP,P:179)
Offset column order(17*20,X:8)
Offset row order(229*2,Y:1)

EWORNINPARATIALLI
ENITIEASALLBERKEK
ARTOFATIATHAESHLA
ITHADARLTHEBESTPI
TINGTOURROCKSOFFS
EVENBETTERTHANGET
LINDESPERENCEETIS
VEAMETHEMOATTHRIL
TOKILLSOMETHINGDI
TFOREANAMALOFALLT
ALLSTHEMOATYANDER
TOUSSTBECARSEMANI
CAUSEMEINTHEFORRE
NAMEWELLINGSILYGA
VETORMTEFUNTHANKI
ILLNOTDAUNATIAMOF
TALAVESISSSOMUCHF
ILLBECOMEMAUSEATI
HAVEKILLERSPLEWEC
CEANYALLTHEANDPEO


Largo, can you describe the transposition steps in detail please? I may want to add this to the menu. Thanks.

Jarlve wrote:Here is a weak solve (overnight run):

Code: Select all

Score: 20708.48 IOC: 0.07133 Multiplicity: 0.18235
Repeats: 453 PC-cycles: 2515 Hours: 7.05

Skytale(UTP,P:179)
Offset column order(17*20,X:8)
Offset row order(229*2,Y:1)

EWORNINPARATIALLI
ENITIEASALLBERKEK
ARTOFATIATHAESHLA
ITHADARLTHEBESTPI
TINGTOURROCKSOFFS
EVENBETTERTHANGET
LINDESPERENCEETIS
VEAMETHEMOATTHRIL
TOKILLSOMETHINGDI
TFOREANAMALOFALLT
ALLSTHEMOATYANDER
TOUSSTBECARSEMANI
CAUSEMEINTHEFORRE
NAMEWELLINGSILYGA
VETORMTEFUNTHANKI
ILLNOTDAUNATIAMOF
TALAVESISSSOMUCHF
ILLBECOMEMAUSEATI
HAVEKILLERSPLEWEC
CEANYALLTHEANDPEO


Largo, can you describe the transposition steps in detail please? I may want to add this to the menu. Thanks.

EWORNINPARATIALLI
ENITIEASALLBERKEK
ARTOFATIATHAESHLA
ITHADARLTHE BESTPI
TING TOUR ROCKS OFF S
EVEN BETTER THAN GET
LINDESPERENCEETIS
VEA ME THE MOAT THRIL
TO KILL SOMETHING DI
TFORE ANAMAL OF ALLT
ALLSTHEMOATYANDER
TOUSST BE CARSEMANI
CAUSE ME IN THEFORRE
NAMEWELLINGSILYGA
VETORMTE FUN THAN KI
ILL NOT DAUNATIAM OF
TALAVESISS SO MUCH F
ILL BE COMEMAUSEAT I
HAVE KILLERSPLEWEC
CEANYALLTHEANDPEO

its interesting the scytale gets a partial solve even if it is bottom too top in sections?

Jarlve wrote:Largo, can you describe the transposition steps in detail please? I may want to add this to the menu. Thanks.

I created the cipher manually and did not implement a suitable algorithm. I proceeded as follows:
Write plaintext from left to right, top to bottom. Each column is shifted upwards by one:

Code: Select all

                I
               LI
              KEK
             ILLI
            NGPEO
           PLEBEC
          AUSEITI
         SSOMUCHF
        UNITIAMOR
       EFUNTHANKI
      LLINGWILDGA
     MEINTHEFORRE
    STBECAUSEMANI
   STHEMOATDANGER
  OUEANAMALOFALLT
 OKILLSOMETHINGGI
VESMETHEMOATTHRIL
LINGESPERENCEETIS
EVENBETTERTHANGET
TINGYOURROCKSOFFW
ITHAGIRLTHEBESTP
ARTOFITIATHAEWH 
ENIDIEIWILLBER   
EBORNINPARADI   
CEANDALLTHEI     
HAVEKILLEDW     
ILLBECOMEM       
YSLAVESIW       
ILLNOTGI         
VEYOUMY         
NAMEBE           
CAUSE           
YOUW             
ILL             
TR               
Y               


Now equalize the columns, spaces are ignored:

Code: Select all

VOOSSMLEUSAPNIKLI
LEKUTTELFNSULGLEI
EISIEHBIIUIOSEPLK
TVNMLAEENNNTMEBEI
IIEGELNMCTGTIUIEO
ATNNETSAOAHWHACTC
ERHGBSHOMAUEIAMHI
ENTAYEPEMATSFLNOF
CBIOGOTEMELDEODKR
HEODFIUTROTOAMRGI
IAARIIRREEAHFNARA
YLVNNETLRRNTIAGNE
ISLEDIIITOTCTNLEI
VLLBKANWAHCHEHGLR
NELAEILPITEKAERGT
CAYNVCLLALHBSNTII
YAMOOEOLTRLAEOGIL
IOUEUTSMEHABESFES
TLUSBMGIEDEDEWTFT
YRLWEEYIWMWIIRHPW


Final step: transpose column order P2:

Code: Select all

VSOAOPSNSIMKLLEIU
LNESKUULTGTLEELIF
EUIISOISEEHPBLIKI
TNVNNTMMLEABEEEIN
ITIGETGIEULINEMOC
AATHNWNHEATCSTACO
EARUHEGIBASMHHOIM
EANTTSAFYLENPOEFM
CEBLIDOEGOODTKERM
HOETOODAFMIRUGTIR
IEAAAHRFINIARRRAE
YRLNVTNINAEGTNLER
IOSTLCETDNILIEIIT
VHLCLHBEKHAGNLWRA
NTEELKAAEEIRLGPTI
CLAHYBNSVNCTLILIA
YRALMAOEOOEGOILLT
IHOAUBEEUSTFSEMSE
TDLEUDSEBWMTGFITE
YMRWLIWIEREHYPIWW


Almost a diagonal transposition with column order P2

without examining your transposition largo the difference is you column shifted up one first and then odds and evens(p2) which will give a different result to doing it with p2 first. and looking at it, they really are good double transposition then a substitution ciphers
it certainly is an easy way to make a jumbled mess.

some options: cut into columns or cut into rows reassemble into odds evens or evens odds then column or row shift/s.
cut into rows reassemble into odds evens or evens odds write out result and then repeat with columns.
column or row shift first then odds evens or vice versa.

The solver should be able to solve it perfectly but gets stuck on the more common period operations. No doubt that eventually it will find it though but it may take to long. It has to find the diagonal transposition at 17 by 20 plus the period column order 2 together because the period column order 2 shifts the period by 1. You can only try to use the diagonal and period column order operations to see if it helps. I may have to look into this at one point to see if performance on this cipher can be improved. Thanks Largo.