_J 

B El 0 R B 'f 

J.C.B. 32/l 

13 March 1944 

REF ID:A67~1 

BlfllEl • 

JOINT COMMUNICATIONS BOARD 

COPY NO. 

SECURITY OF CIPHERS USED BY NON-MILITARY 

AGENCIES OF THE GOVERNMENT 

Note by the Secretary 

CG~Y 

6 

l. The attached memorandum for the President from the Under 

Secretary of State (Enclosure "A") has been referred by the 

Joint Chiefs or Starr to the Joint Communications Board as a 

matter of urgency for study and draft of a reply from the 

President. 

2. Attention is invited to the previous r.ecommendation of 

the Board to the Joint Chiefs of Staff that the President issue 

an Executive Order requiring all non-military agencies or the 

Government to submit their cryptographic systems to the Joint 

Communications Board for examination as to their security. The 

Board's recommendation was not approved by the ~oint Chiefs of 

Staff, who arranged that a member of their Secretariat (Col. 

F. W. Wozencraft) acquaint the various agencies concerned with 

the need for proper use of their cryptographic systems in order 

to prese~ve over-all security (See J.C.B. Minutes, 22 Dec. 42 1 

item 2). On 29 Apr 43 1 the Joint Chiefs of Staff advised the 

Board of the results of this mission (Enclosure "B"). 

3. Enclosure "A" was previously circulated under the short 

title J.C.B. 186. In order to keep all papers on the subject 

in the same basic numbered paper series, it is requested that 

the attached paper be substituted for J.C.B. 1861 which whould 

then be destroyed by burning. 

G. B. MYERS 

Secretary 

J .C .B. 32/1 

eclassified and a roved for release b NSA on 04-08-2014 ursuantto E.O. 1352 
... 

3ECftE'f 

REF ID:A67281 • 

ENCLOSURE "A" 

THE UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE 

Washington 

COP_Y 

March 7, 1944 

' 

Private 

MEMORANDUM FOR THE PRESIDENT 

Subject: Security in handling coded messages. 

Following ou:r conversations last autumn regarding the Department rs code facilities, I immediately began a careful inquiry. Upon looking into the matter, however, I became convinced that it 

was not a problem affecting only a single agency but rather one 

in which the Government as a whole was vitally concerned. 

There are at present thirty-eight Federal agencies :ma.king use 

of cryptographic systems in one form or another, but there is 

adequate internal control in only a few of the agencies and there 

is no over-all coordination. From the point of view of security this is a most dangerous arrangement, for serious blunders seem 

bound to occur which will place in jeopardy the cryptographic systems of the entire government. The present arrangement affords 

ideal conditions under which the enemy can break our codes by comparing messages containing similar informaiion but sent in 

different codes, one of which 1.TJJ1y already have been broken. It 

would appear, therefore, that there must be careful coordination 

among all agencies in the use of cryptographic material. 

In addition, it is essential that the codes themselves be 

sound, that the equipment used be or the most modern types, that 

the personnel employed be skilled, and that adequate security procedures be followed at every step. 

I believe the most effective solution is to assign the War Department, which has had the broadest experience in the field of 

cryptography, the responsibility for making a thorough survey of 

existing codes, equipment, and procedures throughout the Government. The War Department will then be in a position to present 

to you a comprehensive series of recommendations. 

/s/ E. R. Stettinius, Jr. 

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J .C.B. 32/1 

arr J 
... 

SEORE';P 

REF ID:A67281 • 

ENCLOSURE "B" 

TEE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF 

WASHINGTON 

April 29, 1943. 

MEMORANDUM FOR THE JOINT COMMUNICATIONS BOARD: 

Subject: Measures to 1nslll"e the seclll"1ty of codes and ciphers. 

On December l, 1942, the Joint Chiefs of Staff agreed that a letter should be sent to all non-military agencies of 

the government which use codes and ciphers, inviting them to 

submit their codes and ciphers to the Joint Communications Board 

for examination and advice regarding their security. 

I understand that this work has been undertaken with 

very satisfactory results and that in general the Joint 

Communications Board is convinced that the codes and ciphers used by non-military agencies are secure. 

It is desired that any future activity in this regard be conducted by the Joint Communications Board under the direction 

of Joint Security Control and that that agency be kept informed 

of the results obtained from inspections of the codes and 

ciphers of non-military agencies. It should be remembered, 

however, that the utilization of the facilities offered by the 

Joint Communications Board is entirely voluntary on the part of 

the non-military agencies concerned and every effort should be 

made to avoid creating the impression that the Joint Chiefs of 

Staff are attempting to interfere in their activities. 

For the Joint Chiefs of Staff: 

/s/ JOHN R. DEANE,, 

Brigadier General, U.S. Army, Secretary 

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J .C.B. 32?/l