The UNB Crytography Group helped in the international effort to crack the DES encryption algorithm. Using a large number of computers working together in a distributed computing system, and using a brute force attack (trying all possible keys), the distributed.net cracked the DES algorithm in RSA's second DES challenge.

If you are interesting in getting more information about the DES-II challenge click here.

DES-II-1 RESULTS

The winning key to the challenge was detected and submitted to RSA Labs at 02:26 GMT on Monday, 23-Feb-1998.

The correct key, 76 9E 8C D9 F2 2F 5D EA, revealed the words which we've been anticipating these past 39 days: "The secret message is: Many hands make light work."

Project statistics:

        Start of contest:                       January 13, 1998 at 09:00 PST
        Start of distributed.net effort:        January 13, 1998 at 09:08 PST
        End of Contest:                         February 23, 1998 at 02:26 PST

        Size of keyspace:                       72,057,594,037,927,936
        Approximate keys tested:                63,686,000,000,000,000

        Number of 2^30 (average) keyblocks:                 67,108,864
        Number of keys in average keyblock:              1,073,741,824
        Peak blocks per day:                                 5,540,982
        Peak keys per second:                           34,430,460,000

Computing equivalents:

   Distributed.net is equivalent in processing power to:

           11,264       DEC Alpha 21064 533s
           15,316       Sun Ultra I 167s
           22,393       Intel Pentium II 333s
           23,909       Macintosh PowerPC 604e/200s.
           41,712       Intel Pentium 166s
          399,374       Intel 486DX2/66s
        7,446,033       Intel 386SX/20s

(based solely on DES client performance)

DES-II-1 STATISTICS