numbers stations

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Kurt Albershardt <kurt () nv net>
Date: November 17, 2004 1:35:04 PM EST
To: dave () farber net
Subject: numbers stations

Shortwave radio bands, ignored by commercial broadcasters because of 
their low fidelity, have long been home to government activity -- 
whether for national broadcasts such as the BBC World Service, Voice of 
America and Radio France International, or propaganda broadcasts from 
the likes of Radio Havana or the U.S.-backed Radio Free Iraq.

Meanwhile, for the last 30 years an altogether more curious kind of 
international station has been noted on the airwaves.

Across the world, high-powered transmitters with global reach are 
broadcasting seemingly meaningless strings of numbers or letters, along 
with a lot of buzzing and beeping noises.

Some have speculated that the signals from these "numbers stations" are 
operated by drug cartels. However, it's more likely they're run by 
intelligence agencies, as tacitly acknowledged by the British 
government, and accidentally by the Cubans.

<http://wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,65698,00.html>

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