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The Internet mystery that has the world baffled

montrealgazette.com

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Re: The Internet mystery that has the world baffled

#61

Post by elohesra »

Macuyiko wrote: post #19
mhb wrote: post #17

By multiplying them together, the solvers found a new prime... Huh?

It's like a complex Sudoku puzzle, you probably wouldn't understand...

Genuinely made me laugh. I always crack a smile when I see someone use the "you probably wouldn't get it" cop-out (yes, I realise you're making a mockery of the concept) to avoid explaining something that they evidently don't understand either. I seem to see this fairly often in large, complex fields like mathematics or complex systems programming from people who either have an agenda or are trying to bullshit their way through a job for which they're under-qualified.

Re: The Internet mystery that has the world baffled

#62

Post by krazydad »

JoblessWonder wrote: post #48
JackFr wrote: post #43

Color me skeptical, but it seems like bullshit to me. The newspaper article has basically one source. The Wikipedia article dates from the day the newspaper article was published, and only has the article (and a reprint) as its sources. http://uncovering-cicada.wikia.com doesn't seem to have any activity from more than 6 days ago. I'm really not a cyber-sleuth like the guy in the story, but the first two pages of Goo…

Here[0] is a reference from 2 years ago. I found a few more from the past. [0] https://github.com/bibanon/bibanon/wiki/Cicada-3301-wiki

The "original image" linked to on this site also does not contain the plain-text "TIBERIVS CLAVDIVS CAESAR" etc. described, according to my hex editor.

Re: The Internet mystery that has the world baffled

#63

Post by tedunangst »

clarry wrote: post #54
fchollet wrote: post #45

Fascinating story, but that article reads like the journalist took troll stories from 4c as sources. Seriously, whoever wrote this appears to be clueless. > "a robotic voice told them to find the prime numbers in the original image. By multiplying them together, the solvers found a new prime" Excuse me? > "TOR is an obscure routing network that allows anonymous access to the “darknet” — the vast, murky portion of the…

> > "TOR is an obscure routing network that allows anonymous access to the “darknet” — the vast, murky portion of the Internet that cannot be indexed by standard search engines. Estimated to be 5,000 times larger that the “surface” web, it’s in these recesses that you’ll find human-trafficking rings, black market drug markets and terrorist networks" > Sure... the "surface" web is just the tip of the iceberg, right? J…

Your wikipedia link would include my bank account as part of the deep web, since it's hidden behind a password login. Good to know I'm keeping company with human trafficking rings and terrorist networks.

Re: The Internet mystery that has the world baffled

#65

Post by tedunangst »

leephillips wrote: post #47
stormcrowsx wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Its not wasted time if you enjoy doing it.

"The time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time." -- Bertrand Russell

"Time isn't wasted, when you're getting wasted."

-- Asher Roth

Re: The Internet mystery that has the world baffled

#66

Post by moocowduckquack »

leephillips wrote: post #46
mhb wrote: post #17

By multiplying them together, the solvers found a new prime... Huh?

"To create encryption keys, RSA uses two huge prime numbers and multiplies them together to produce an even bigger prime." -- Sandeep Junnarkar, CNET News.com August 9, 2002

facepalm

Re: The Internet mystery that has the world baffled

#67

Post by toddsiegel »

I am apparently using TOR wrong.

> "TOR is an obscure routing network that allows anonymous access to the “darknet” — the vast, murky portion of the Internet that cannot be indexed by standard search engines. Estimated to be 5,000 times larger that the “surface” web, it’s in these recesses that you’ll find human-trafficking rings, black market drug markets and terrorist networks"

Re: The Internet mystery that has the world baffled

#69

Post by smartician »

http://uncovering-cicada.wikia.com/wiki/What_Happened_Part_2...

    "After completing the test each solver was sent the following email 
    to the address they had inputted. [...]

    'In the programming language of your choice build a TCP server 
    that implements the protocol below.  
    The server code must be written by you and you alone, 
    although you are free to use any modules or libraries publicly available 
    for the selected programming language.'"
Sounds like a very elaborate hiring process for a global organization. After solving all those sophisticated puzzles, being told to implement a TCP server is rather anticlimactic...
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