Cybersecurity report from Middle-earth

[harlan4096]

What do Tolkien’s works say? Some read them as entertainment, others as profound Christian philosophy, still others as propaganda. As for me, I see cybersecurity parables. And just because these past few years I’ve been seeing them all over the place doesn’t mean they’re not also in Tolkien.

After all, did you know that shortly before the outbreak of WW2, Tolkien was trained at the British Government Code and Cypher School as a cryptanalyst? That’s the organization that went on to crack the German Enigma codes. Later it was rebranded as GCHQ — the service responsible for providing signals intelligence and information assurance to the British government and armed forces. Clearly, Tolkien’s combined skills as a linguist and a cryptanalyst were needed to decrypt enemy cyphers. That’s definitely information security we’re talking about. Therefore, in a way, Tolkien is an esteemed colleague of ours. So, let’s look at his works from a cybersecurity point of view.

Rings of Power

The plot of The Lord of the Rings largely revolves around the One Ring, created by Sauron to rule the world. It controls 19 other rings, three of which are worn by Elves, seven by Dwarves, and nine by Men. The book’s protagonists fear that if the One Ring returns to its creator, he will acquire frightful power and impose his will on everything.  Sounds like fantasy, but dig a bit deeper and it becomes clear that it’s actually proper sci-fi.

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky

When I read Tolkien’s books back in childhood, it was the story of the Elven Rings that seemed the most incomprehensible. Supposedly forged by Elven smiths, they were untouched by the Dark Lord. However, they were created using the dark arts of Sauron and thus were still bound to the One Ring. Therefore, the Elves kept their rings securely hidden as long as the One remained with Sauron. What does it matter, or so it seemed, how the rings were made if they were created for good?

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