Playfair cipher
Playfair cipher
Playfair cipher definition
The Playfair cipher is a manual symmetric encryption method once used to secure sensitive military communications. It encrypts letters in pairs (digraphs), unlike traditional ciphers that encrypt one letter at a time.
See also: substitution cipher, Caesar encryption, cryptographic key, cryptographic algorithm, decryption
How the Playfair cipher works
- The Playfair cipher uses a 5×5 grid, where each square contains an alphabet letter (combining “I” and “J” to fit into the 25 spaces).
- To encrypt a message, the sender and receiver agree on a keyword. This keyword is written in the grid first, filling the rest with the remaining alphabet letters in order.
- During encryption, pairs of letters are substituted based on simple rules depending on their positions (e.g., if they’re in the same row or column).
- The encrypted pairs of letters are combined to form the ciphertext.
- The receiver of the encrypted message reads it by reversing the encryption process.
History of the Playfair cipher
- 1854: The Playfair cipher was invented by Charles Wheatstone, a British scientist. The cipher’s name comes from Lord Lyon Playfair, a prominent scientist and politician. Playfair was a friend of Wheatstone and helped popularize the cipher.
- Late 19th century: British forces first used the cipher operationally during the Boer War.
- World War I: The Playfair cipher’s most extensive use was during World War I. British forces adopted it for secure, quick field communications with no special equipment.
- Post-WWI: As better encryption methods and machines came along, the Playfair cipher fell out of use for serious military purposes.
Uses of the LMHOSTS file
- Military communications. The primary use of the Playfair cipher was in military settings. It helped encrypt tactical messages that needed to remain secret from enemy forces.
- Educational tool. Today, it is often used for teaching about codes and secret messages in a simple way.
- Recreational cryptography. People also use it for fun in puzzles and code-breaking challenges.