Code Name Purple
11 May 2027 · United States
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Why it is on our radar
Greenfield pairs the problem of a machine cipher with the human labor required to break it. The American team broadens the familiar wartime codebreaking narrative.
About the book
A team of American cryptanalysts takes on Purple, the Japanese cipher machine considered secure by its designers. Amy Butler Greenfield follows both the technical breakthrough and the people behind it, connecting their work to intelligence exchanged during World War II and their lives outside the code room.
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