this post was submitted on 24 Dec 2025
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Was it classified because cracking the Enigma machine was still a matter of national security by the 1950s or because the UK didn't want to talk about the people that cracked it?
Enigma was widely used, not just by Germany during the war, and was still current in the 50s. Additionally, the methods used to defeat Enigma had value against other encryption. It is also the policy of British intelligence not to publicise their work or capabilities.
British intelligence workers also took the Official Secrets Act at its word, while their American counterparts eventually assumed that as it was in the past they could talk about it.
Definitely the former (though maybe the latter too)