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Zero protection from nuclear code (under 2 Dem Admins, nuclear launch code set to 00000000)

The Guardian ^ | Thursday June 17, 2004 | Oliver Burkeman in Washington

Posted on by dead

In the darkest days of the Cold War, as the world trembled on the brink of nuclear conflict, one thing above all stood in the way of catastrophe: the secret eight-digit access number required to launch the US's arsenal of intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Without that vital obstacle, anybody - a crazed military commander, or a terrorist - might have been able to spark a conflict that would have killed millions.

For the sake of our sanity, then, perhaps it is best that we have had to wait until now to discover that for many years, according to an expert closely involved in the process, the eight digits in question were 00000000.

"The codes were the only real mechanical or technical impediment to the crews launching missiles," said Bruce Blair, who worked as a launch officer in a nuclear missile silo in Montana. "And they were all set to zero. The safeguard was non-functional."

Mr Blair, now president of the Centre for Defence Information, a Washington think tank, said he recently revealed the information to Robert McNamara, secretary of defence during the Kennedy and Johnson administrations. He said Mr McNamara responded he was shocked and outraged, and asked: "Who the hell authorised that?"

The codes were set to zero because they were so deeply disliked by the military, Mr Blair argues in a document from the centre. He says Mr McNamara "basically forced" the system on senior commanders, who were far more concerned with eliminating anything that might slow down their otherwise lightning-fast response to a Soviet attack.

Mr Blair and one other colleague were in a position to fire up to 50 Minuteman missiles at the Soviet Union.

Steven Bellovin, a researcher for AT&T who has studied launch codes, said he was puzzled by Mr Blair's revelations, and suggested he was confusing two sets of codes, one to detonate the nuclear bomb and one to launch the missile containing the bomb.

The Guardian



TOPICS:

Foreign Affairs

Front Page News

Government

News/Current Events

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To: dead

"15 Minutes of Fame" alert.....



To: dead

"Steven Bellovin, a researcher for AT&T who has studied launch codes, said he was puzzled by Mr Blair's revelations, and suggested he was confusing two sets of codes, one to detonate the nuclear bomb and one to launch the missile containing the bomb."



So the explanation defusing this "scandal" is perhaps provided in the very last sentence: either the launch code or the detonate code was NOT 00000000, so the whole premise of the story is shattered.



To: dead

They must have messed up the editing on this story - there is no attempt to blame it on Bush.



To: Steve_Seattle

Well, the former launch officer claims he could launch them, and the ATT researcher says he couldn't. Just depends on who you believe.



by 5 posted onby dead (I've got my eye out for Mullah Omar.)

To: dead

...suggested he was confusing two sets of codes, one to detonate the nuclear bomb and one to launch the missile containing the bomb. Maybe the codes were alphanumeric, and the other set consisted of eight capital "O"s. That would explain the confusion...



To: dead

I would imagine, the last thing someone would try would be 00000000. But it was still retarded.



by 7 posted onby smith288 (Ronald went to touch the face of God. Goodbye, Mr President.)

To: dead

Mr Blair and one other colleague were in a position to fire up to 50 Minuteman missiles at the Soviet Union. There is a definite smell test problem with this story. Perhaps it was true at his site, perhaps not. In light of the nature and presumed gravity of the story, I would expect a better writeup, better details about the scope of the claim (does it apply to all nuclear weapons, a strategic command, or just this guy's silo?), and, of course, an official investigation. Since we still have nuclear weapons in service, I would say this matter deserves some scrutiny. As for Steve Bellovin, he's a god in the Unix world, and I would not dismiss his opinions or critique likely. Bellovin I know about. Blair? Never heard of him.



by 8 posted onby Imal (Bill Clinton was the man who brought the dignity of The Jerry Springer Show to the U.S. presidency.)

To: Steve_Seattle

The "Center for Defense Information" is a radical left-wing pacifist outfit, so the whole story is likely bogus.



To: Imal

As for Steve Bellovin, he's a god in the Unix world, and I would not dismiss his opinions or critique likely. Bellovin I know about. Blair? Never heard of him. Per the story, Blair was a Minute Man missile launch officer. If true, his knowledge and experience vis-a-vis the Minute Man missile system would seem to trump any of your software deities.



To: dead

You can bet the guy who came up with it logs into his PC with his password set to "password."



To: All

Surely, I cannot be the only Freeper who lived in a hole in the Midwest during the cold war.



I was a BMAT in a TITAN II hole.



This entire story is rubbish: First, there was an authentication code. Then, a 2nd code was derived from that. Then the BMAT (enlisted) used both codes to derive his/her code that actually activated the missile.



That sure seems like a hell of a lot of work to get to "00000000".



by 12 posted onby baltodog (There are three kinds of people: Those who can count, and those who can't.)

To: smith288

I would imagine, the last thing someone would try would be 00000000. But it was still retarded. Its almost as bad as something some a**hole would use for his luggage!



by 13 posted onby freedumb2003 (I want to die in my sleep like Gramps -- not yelling and screaming like those in his car)

To: dead

HELMET: So the combination is one, two, three, four, five. That's the stupidest combination I've ever heard in my life. That's the kinda thing an idiot would have on his luggage.



by 14 posted onby Puppage (You may disagree with what I have to say, but I shall defend to your death my right to say it)

To: dead

Sheesh!



I sat on my cell phone one time an dialed that code- "0000000"



Scary to think that something so simple could have set off a nuclear attack.



To: dead

that's the kind of code an idiot uses on his luggage lock.



To: been_lurking

No missile crew memeber knows the code until the moment of launch.



by 17 posted onby baltodog (There are three kinds of people: Those who can count, and those who can't.)

To: been_lurking

How would Blair know what the codes were set to? Does a "launch officer" know the codes? How many people are authorized to know the codes? Who sets them, who authorizes them to be changed? Is it credible that Blair would know what the codes were?



To: dead

"...eliminating anything that might slow down their otherwise lightning-fast response to a Soviet attack."



Our response would be swift, no doubt....



But there is also Defcon and Posture ("readiness") that need to be set via the same codes.



Defcon/Posture aren't set "lightning fast".



by 19 posted onby baltodog (There are three kinds of people: Those who can count, and those who can't.)

To: UncleHambone

That's the kind of code an idiot uses on his luggage lock.



An idiot like me. Anything more complex than that, and I'd forget it and be unable to open my luggage, then everyone would KNOW I'm an idiot.



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