MATRIX ENCRYPTION ALGORITHM
A complex algorithm that generates a random substitution grid based on user keys. The user keys, are generated from the combination of a pseudo-random number and the decimal expansion of PI. This is a hobby project that gives a user the option to encrypt an alphanumeric text message using "Easy", "Moderate", and "Hard" levels. The same message will output different encrypted messages in ALL levels as every time the key that the program generates will be different. The number of random grids possible is 36! (36 * 35 * 34 * ... * 1) = 371993326789901217467999448150835200000000. That's a lot!
REFERENCE GRID
values = [
["a", "b", "c", "d", "e", "f"],
["g", "h", "i", "j", "k", "l"],
["m", "n", "o", "p", "q", "r"],
["s", "t", "u", "v", "w", "x"],
["y", "z", "0", "1", "2", "3"],
["4", "5", "6", "7", "8", "9"]
]
myrows = ["1", "2", "1,1", "1,2", "2,1", "2,2"]
mycolumns = ["1", "2", "1,1", "1,2", "2,1", "2,2"]
The encoded text for any character (alphabet or number) = row + column, joined together. Punctuation and spaces are ignored. So "abc" as per Reference grid = 111211,1. That is "a" = first row + first column = 11; "b" = first row + second column = 12 and "c" = first row + third column = 11,1 and so on.
EASY LEVEL
Type 1 for Easy, 2 for Moderate or 3 for Hard: 1
You chose EASY level encryption:
Write 1 to Encode or 0 to Decode: 1
Enter message to be encoded: Hello World
The Encoded message is: 2,112,211,121,121,11,12,21,21,11,12,21,11,122,12,2
Your Private Key is: 536516
The advantage of Easy level is that it is nice and simple. It generates only one key to remember. However, even without a key, the input of a random key will lead to a string of random characters which could then be prone to frequency analysis. A single alphanumeric character in the EASY level will be coded as another single character throughout the length of the message.
Type 1 for Easy, 2 for Moderate or 3 for Hard: 1
You chose EASY level encryption:
Write 1 to Encode or 0 to Decode: 1
Enter message to be encoded: AAAAA
The Encoded message is: 2121212121
Your Private Key is: 57278
If someone enters a random key the output will be prone to frequency analysis, although it might not be the original message.
Type 1 for Easy, 2 for Moderate or 3 for Hard: 1
You chose EASY level encryption:
Write 1 to Encode or 0 to Decode: 0
Enter message to be decoded: 2121212121
Enter Private Key: 12345
The decoded message is: yyyyy
MODERATE LEVEL
The MODERATE level splits the plain text message into a random number of parts and generates a random number of keys. The program then generates a random number of substitution grids. The user will need all the keys to decode the message. These keys will need to be entered in the same sequence as the program outputs at the time of encryption.
Type 1 for Easy, 2 for Moderate or 3 for Hard: 2
You chose MODERATE level encryption:
Write 1 to Encode or 0 to Decode: 1
Enter message to be encoded: Hello World
The Encoded message is: 22,222,12,212,2111.2,22,1222,112,21,11,12,2.
Your Keys are: ['90229', '107543']
The advantage is that the same letter might be encoded differently throughout the length of the message.
Type 1 for Easy, 2 for Moderate or 3 for Hard: 2
You chose MODERATE level encryption:
Write 1 to Encode or 0 to Decode: 1
Enter message to be encoded: AAAAA
The Encoded message is: 22,222,222,2.2,11,12,11,1.
Your Keys are: ['585816', '816543']
If someone enters random keys, the resulting message will be difficult to crack using frequency analysis unless each part of the message is analysed separately. Therefore, the effort required to frequency-analyse the encoded text is multiplied proportionately.
Type 1 for Easy, 2 for Moderate or 3 for Hard: 2
You chose MODERATE level encryption:
Write 1 to Encode or 0 to Decode: 0
Enter message to be decoded: 22,222,222,2.2,11,12,11,1.
Enter Private Key number 1: 12345
Enter Private Key number 2: 67890
The Decoded message is : xxxtt
In the example above, it is difficult for someone to realise that the original text contains just a single alphabet "A", five times. In the first half of the message "A" was encoded as "x" and in the second half as "t".
HARD LEVEL
In the HARD, and most advanced level, a random substitution grid is generated for each character of the original message. A message with 100 characters will generate 100 random grids and therefore 100 random keys. However, the user just needs a 12 digit Master Key to decode the message.
Type 1 for Easy, 2 for Moderate or 3 for Hard: 3
You chose HARD level encryption.
Write 1 to Encode or 0 to Decode: 1
Enter message to be encoded: Hello World
The Encoded message is: 2,112,12,22,222,12,12,21,111,211,12,22,12,12,221,2
Your Master Key is : 634337763159
The advantage is that a single letter could potentially have 36 different representations, depending on the length of the message.
Type 1 for Easy, 2 for Moderate or 3 for Hard: 3
You chose HARD level encryption.
Write 1 to Encode or 0 to Decode: 1
Enter message to be encoded: AAAAA
The Encoded message is: 1,21,21,111,12,22,22,12,22,2
Your Master Key is : 778599739229
If someone enters a random Master Key, the message will be impossible to crack using frequency analysis as the grid is rotated with every character in the message.
Type 1 for Easy, 2 for Moderate or 3 for Hard: 3
You chose HARD level encryption.
Write 1 to Encode or 0 to Decode: 0
Enter message to be decoded: 1,21,21,111,12,22,22,12,22,2
Enter Master Key: 123456765432
The Decoded message is : 3kkga
The only thing that can be determined with certainty is the number of alphanumeric characters in the original message. It is impossible to use frequency analysis on the decoded message.
CREATING YOUR OWN GRID
If you wish you can create your own grid by putting in your own values for rows and columns defined in the code. Needless to say the only requirement is that each value in the row array (on its own) and the column array (on its own) is unique.
myrows = ["A", "B", "C", "D", "E", "F"]
mycolumns = ["M", "N", "3", "4", "0", "9"]
This is perfectly OK and will work with the program.
Type 1 for Easy, 2 for Moderate or 3 for Hard: 3
You chose HARD level encryption.
Write 1 to Encode or 0 to Decode: 1
Enter message to be encoded: Hello World
The Encoded message is: 0F0E4D9E9C9FNBNF0A3A
Your Master Key is : 729943376055
You can keep the same values in the arrays, and that will be OK too. Or you can shuffle the values around too. For example:
myrows = ["A", "B", "C", "D", "E", "F"]
mycolumns = ["A", "B", "C", "D", "E", "F"]
Will yield:
Type 1 for Easy, 2 for Moderate or 3 for Hard: 3
You chose HARD level encryption.
Write 1 to Encode or 0 to Decode: 1
Enter message to be encoded: Hello World
The Encoded message is: AEFABFCFEDCFBAEBDFAD
Your Master Key is : 948360280947
Or you could get creative:
myrows = ["H", "O", "L", "M", "E", "S"]
mycolumns = ["W", "A", "T", "S", "O", "N"]
You can make the values more complicated to a human eye by using a grid like this:
myrows = ["SH", "E", "R,L", "O", "C", "K"]
mycolumns = ["1", "2", "1,1", "1,2", "2,1", "2,2"]
Will yield:
Type 1 for Easy, 2 for Moderate or 3 for Hard: 3
You chose HARD level encryption.
Write 1 to Encode or 0 to Decode: 1
Enter message to be encoded: AAAAA
The Encoded message is: 1,2C1,2SH1,1SH1,1O1,2K
Your Master Key is : 414239432107
If the values in the myrows and mycolumns array are not unique - the code will still work but the decoder will output unrecognisable strings as it won't know that which column or row does a particular value fall under, as there will be more than one. However, please note that a grid that uses a value that uses something other than a comma as a separator will not work (it will encode but not decode). Also the decoding will not work if there are more than one characters to the left or right of the comma in the myrows and mycolumns definitions. The following grids will not decode a message:
myrows = ["SH", "E", "R;L", "O", "C", "K"]
mycolumns = ["1", "2", "1,1", "1,2", "2,1", "2,2"]
myrows = ["S", "H", "E,RL", "O", "C", "K"]
mycolumns = ["1", "2", "1,1", "1,2", "2,1", "2,2"]
myrows = ["A", "B", "C", "D", "E", "F"]
mycolumns = ["M", "M", "N", "O", "P", "Q"]
Needless to say, defining these initial arrays is a matter of personal choice and you can change it when and as you wish! Having letters instead of the original grid does give away the fact that each character encoded is equivalent to two characters. Therefore, for a human being it might be then easier to compute how many characters are there in the original string. Above all, no matter how you modify the arrays to your choice - have fun!
CONCLUSION
- This is a hobby project and in no way designed to be used for professional or commercial encryption.
- I hope users will have as much fun and learning using it as I did programming it.
- I invite code-crackers to crack the code using frequency analysis and/or brute force: (1) Encode a message in Hard Mode (2) Throw away the key (3) Decode the encoded message using brute force guessing or any other means.