Anthropic · Claude · NIST · Bitcoin.com News
Claude AI Cracks the NSA’s 25-Year Cryptography Seed Mystery
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For 25 years, cryptographers suspected the NSA’s mysterious encryption seeds might conceal a backdoor.
Key facts
- Five curves, known as P-192, P-224, P-256, P-384 and P-521, eventually became part of standards published by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
- In October 2023, cryptographer Filippo Valsorda offered a $12,288 bounty for anyone who could explain the seeds’ origins
- P-192 originated from a timestamp corresponding to May 18, 1997, while P-521 traced to Aug. 8 of that year
- P-256 followed on Aug. 16, P-384 on Aug. 30, and P-224 on April 3, 1998
Summary
Anthropic says Claude solved a 25-year NSA encryption mystery in under 30 minutes. NIST’s five prime-field curve seeds trace to a Unix-era generator using 1997-98 timestamps. Anthropic’s $36,864 bounty went to ISRG, while the origin of the B-163 seed remains unresolved. For decades, some of the world’s brightest cryptographers had been chasing a ghost.