A complex internet challenge for the world’s brightest brains has reportedly returned with a cryptic tweet from the anonymous group.
— 1231507051321 (@1231507051321) January 6, 2016
Who is behind Cicada 3301?
Cicada 3301 is the name given to a faceless organisation or person who has been setting insanely complex challenges to code-breakers on the internet since 2012.
Nobody knows for sure the identity of the group behind the puzzles but speculation about who may be behind it includes the Freemasons, the Illuminati, hacker group Anonymous, the US Government or just a troll having some fun.
How did it all begin?
The first 3301 puzzles began appearing in January 2012, they were initially posted on sites like 4Chan and Reddit. Once internet sleuths solve one puzzle they are given another puzzle [and so on].
Joel Eriksson, a computer analyst from Sweden, came across an intriguing message on an internet forum in 2012.
“We are looking for highly intelligent individuals,” it said. “To find them, we have devised a test. There is a message hidden in this image. Find it, and it will lead you on the road to finding us. We look forward to meeting the few that will make it all the way through. Good luck.”
Another image posted on 4Chan read: “There is a message hidden in this image.
“Find it and it will lead you on the road to finding us. We look forward to meeting the few who will make it all the way through.
“Good Luck. 3301.”
Can anyone take part in the challenge?
You can certainly try, although you probably wouldn’t get very far. You will need a strong knowledge of cryptography, programming, computer networks and much more to ever solve the puzzle.
Like a ‘Deal or no Deal’ pub quiz, knowledge of literature and numerology can also come in handy when trying to solve the series of cryptographic puzzles.
Has anyone ever solved a puzzle?
Eriksson did manage to get to the end of the puzzle set in 2012, even taking time off work in an attempt to crack it.
He just missed out however after reaching the final server to discover the winners had apparently already been chosen. Eriksson heard that those chosen had been asked to solve puzzles in private.
Read more about his incredible journey through the dark web here.
Could it all be a practical joke?
Kenny Paterson, a crypto-professor at Royal Holloway University, told BBC Radio 4 it doesn’t appear to be the work of an internet troll or a PR exercise.
"There's been several such competitions in the past. Google used to post puzzles on billboards beside the highways in Silicon Valley to attract people to come and work for them. A few years ago, our own GCHQ had a set of puzzles for people to solve as a way to recruit people with bright minds
“It's unlikely to be a spoof due to the lengths [Cicada 3301] have gone to. They are really sophisticated; they have all kinds of amazing, esoteric references in there to the work of [occultist] Aleister Crowley, for example, paintings by William Blake, and Maya numerals. It takes a long, long time to set up puzzles like this. It's not something you can do in your spare time."
Has it returned?
@seanwbehan @ElijahPena @1231507051321 pic.twitter.com/YiJ9QAHVMF
— Ganja Gamer (@The_Ganja_Gamer) January 7, 2016 @1231507051321 The game has begun.
— Mateus Costa (@MateusFast19) January 6, 2016 An unconfirmed tweet sent on January 5 has apparently signalled the return of Cicada 3301 in 2016, although fake 3301 puzzles have circulated in the past.
The account tweeted a link to an image with the caption: “Liber Primus [a book of encrypted runes] is the way. Its words are the map, their meaning is the road, and their numbers are the direction.”
Hello @NSAGov, I found this on my way home. CICADA 3301, can you hear me? pic.twitter.com/LpjM6AL8ij
— ★ Kevin B. Bowie ★ (@CrowleyTheBeast) January 4, 2016 is this a clue for the 2016 hunt? #hacking #cicada3301 pic.twitter.com/4fqeSXrftI
— James Madden (@GokuYourself) January 12, 2016 #cicada3301 pic.twitter.com/7y3mjLeHCS
— ⚠Phil Grim⚠ (@wdotdotsd___m) January 7, 2016 Many believe the key to solving the puzzle is deciphering the Liber Primus although other players have cited it as a source of frustration.
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