American Cryptology during the Cold War - The Black Vault
American Cryptology during the Cold War - The Black Vault
American Cryptology during the Cold War - The Black Vault
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
Ib) (1)<br />
Ib) (3) -P.L. 86-36<br />
Thus was <strong>the</strong> TEMPEST industry spawned. NSA initiated a jointproject with <strong>the</strong> SCAs,<br />
which in <strong>the</strong> early years discovered problems much more rapidly than it could design<br />
solutions. In 1955 <strong>the</strong> problem of electromagnetic emanations wa~ I<br />
I<br />
IMoreover, <strong>the</strong>re was hard evidence that in this one area <strong>the</strong><br />
Soviets were far ahead of<strong>the</strong> U.s. technologically and that America.'s East Bloc embassies<br />
were all being penetrated. It was a Frankenstein House ofHorrors. 7o<br />
<strong>The</strong> first big breakthrough was by Naval Research Labs, which redesigned <strong>the</strong><br />
offending 131-B2 mixer and called it <strong>the</strong> NRL Mixer. NRL used a technique called lowlevel<br />
ke in , in which <strong>the</strong> ower was lowered to such an extent that a signal previously<br />
heKWcontaine<br />
t IS CIrCUltry, as 1 every crypto device a ter that. song as i;he<br />
communications center used <strong>the</strong> device at <strong>the</strong> suppressed keying mode ra<strong>the</strong>r than at full<br />
power (an unwarranted assumption), it was reasonably well protected. 71<br />
By 1958 NSA was ready with <strong>the</strong> first generally applicable TEMPEST standards, which<br />
were published under JCS authority. Acc9rding to <strong>the</strong> new guidelines, Department of<br />
Defense organizations could not use equipment that would radiate far<strong>the</strong>r than <strong>the</strong> zone of<br />
control~<br />
INSA published NAG-I, a TEMPEST bible that<br />
established TEMPEST measurement techniques and standards. <strong>The</strong> new rules did not,<br />
however, say anything about when <strong>the</strong> guidelines had to be met, nor did JCS budget<br />
money to fix <strong>the</strong> problem. Funds had to come from <strong>the</strong> individual commands and had to<br />
compete with all o<strong>the</strong>r funding priorities. Recognizing that <strong>the</strong> problem was far from<br />
fixed, USCSB in 1960 established its first and only subcommittee, <strong>the</strong> Special Committee<br />
on Compromising Emanations. 72 But many years would pass before TEMPEST standards<br />
reached general acceptance.<br />
Notes<br />
Ib) (3) -P.L. 86-36<br />
1. NSAlCSS Archives, ACC 6851, CBKI 61.<br />
2. Colin B. Burke, "<strong>The</strong> Machine AgEl Begins at OP-20-G: Or, Don't Do It This Way Again," presentation at <strong>the</strong><br />
1992 Cryptologic History SYrtlposlum, 28 October 1992.<br />
3.1 tTIl~ Secret <strong>War</strong>," in CCH Series IV.V.7.18; Joel Shurkin, Engines of<strong>the</strong> Mind: A History of<br />
<strong>the</strong> Computer(New York: W. W. Norton, 1984).<br />
4. SRH-267.<br />
5. Ibid.<br />
6. Samuel S. Snyder, "<strong>The</strong> Influence ofU.S. Cryptologic Organizations on <strong>the</strong> Digital Computer Industry," SRH<br />
003.<br />
7. Ibid.<br />
IIAN'BLFl VIA 'i'1\LFlfff IlFlYIISLFl eSMm'i' eSfif'fIt6LS"t S'fFlMSd'SU('i'LY<br />
NOT RfjLEASABI E TO FOREI€lN N1r'ffSfO!l:L~<br />
222