SpyCast

“Codebreaking and Codemaking Down Under” – with John Blaxland and Clare Birgin


Listen Later

Summary

John Blaxland (XLinkedIn) and Clare Birgin (Wikipedia, LinkedIn) join Andrew (XLinkedIn) to discuss Australian codebreaking. John and Clare are coauthors of the new book Revealing Secrets

What You’ll LearnIntelligence
  • The importance of SIGINT
  • Codebreaking in Australian intelligence
  • Australia’s role in WWII and the Cold War
  • The advent and evolution of cyber 
  • Reflections
    • Strategic defense and offense 
    • The power, and danger, of communication
    • And much, much more …
      Quotes of the Week

      "What I've noticed with the Australians, and I think it's similar in the other the other Five Eyes countries, these people tend to be quite patriotic to do [Signals Intelligence]. They want to, they love their country, and it also seems to preserve very good qualities.” -Clare Birgin.


      Resources SURFACE SKIM*Spotlight Resource* 
      Revealing Secrets: An unofficial history of Australian Signals intelligence and the advent of cyber, Clare Birgin and John Blaxland (University of New South Wales Press, 2023) *SpyCasts*
      • I Helped Solve the Final Zodiac Killer Cipher with David Oranchak (2024)
      • Australian National Day Special: Intelligence Down Under with John Blaxland (2024)
      • My Father the Navajo Code-Talker with Laura Tohe (2023) 
      • CYBER AUGUST: “So, You Want to Be a Codebreaker?” with Elonka Dunin and Klaus Schmeh (2021) 
        *Beginner Resources*
        • Australia's Involvement in WWII, Australian Broadcasting Service, YouTube (2020) [4 min. video]
        • A short history of cyber espionage, D. O’Brien, Medium (2017) [Short article]
        • Signals Intelligence (SINGINT) Overview, National Security Agency (n.d.) [Short article]
          DEEPER DIVEPrimary Sources 
          • WMD Report (2005) 
          • The ANZUS Treaty (1951)
          • Role and effectiveness of Signals Intelligence in World War II (1945)
          • The Atlantic Charter (1941)
          • The Zimmerman Telegram (1917)
          • Oral History by Ruby Boye Jones (n.d.)
            *Wildcard Resource*
            • Here’s a challenge – For their 75th Anniversary in 2022, the Australian Signals Directorate released a limited edition coin with multiple layers of code to crack on both sides. 
            • Think you can solve it? Check out the link above and test your code-cracking skills. 
            • Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

              ...more
              View all episodesView all episodes
              Download on the App Store

              SpyCastBy SpyCast

              • 5
              • 5
              • 5
              • 5
              • 5

              5

              3 ratings


              More shows like SpyCast

              View all
              SpyCast by SpyCast

              SpyCast

              1,505 Listeners

              Risky Business by Patrick Gray

              Risky Business

              361 Listeners

              StarTalk Radio by Neil deGrasse Tyson

              StarTalk Radio

              14,102 Listeners

              Secrets and Spies Podcast: Current Affairs | Geopolitics | Intelligence by Secrets & Spies

              Secrets and Spies Podcast: Current Affairs | Geopolitics | Intelligence

              270 Listeners

              Cold War Conversations by Ian Sanders

              Cold War Conversations

              447 Listeners

              Strict Scrutiny by Crooked Media

              Strict Scrutiny

              5,650 Listeners

              The Team House by dee takos

              The Team House

              1,688 Listeners

              True Spies: Espionage | Investigation | Crime | Murder | Detective | Politics by SPYSCAPE

              True Spies: Espionage | Investigation | Crime | Murder | Detective | Politics

              1,960 Listeners

              The Rest Is History by Goalhanger

              The Rest Is History

              12,918 Listeners

              SPYCRAFT 101 by Justin Black

              SPYCRAFT 101

              320 Listeners

              History Daily by Airship | Noiser | Wondery

              History Daily

              2,016 Listeners

              Ukraine: The Latest by The Telegraph

              Ukraine: The Latest

              1,831 Listeners

              NatSec Matters by Beacon Global Strategies LLC

              NatSec Matters

              253 Listeners

              The Spy Who by Wondery

              The Spy Who

              549 Listeners

              The Rest Is Classified by Goalhanger

              The Rest Is Classified

              969 Listeners