Tools to decrypt/encrypt Rail Fence automatically. Rail Fence cipher is a transposition cipher consisting in writing a text in zig-zag and read it from left to right.
Rail Fence (Zig-Zag) Cipher - dCode
Tag(s) : Transposition Cipher
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Rail Fence Encryption uses an integer for the number of levels of the zigzag.
The encoded message is written in zig-zag (like a rail fence/sawtooth) along a path with N levels/floors.
Example: Encrypt DCODEZIGZAG with N=3 is writing
D---E---Z-- |
-C-D-Z-G-A- |
--O---I---G |
The cipher message is read by rows.
Example: The encrypted message is DEZCDZGAOIG
RailFence decryption requires to know the number of levels N.
Example: Decrypt the message DEZCDZGAOIG with N=3
Write the expected zigzag form and complete it by lines, before reading as zig zag
Example:
X---X---X-- |
-X-X-X-X-X- |
--X---X---X |
D---E---Z-- |
-C-D-Z-G-A- |
--O---I---G |
Example: The original plain text is DCODEZIGZAG.
A message encoded by Rail-Fence has an index of coincidence equal to that of the language of the original text.
Frequency analysis reveals usual occurrences of common letters similar to a plain text.
All references to zig-zag, sawtooth, rails, path/track/route, etc. are clues.
Rail Fence can be cracked by testing all levels from 2 to N. Use the Brute-force attack button.
There are several variations:
- The fence may begin with a peak or a hollow (up or down).
Example: A...E
.B.D.
..C.. (↘↗ hollow)
Example: ..C..
.B.D.
A...E (↗↘ peak)
- The first letter is not necessarily the base of the peak or hollow, the zig zag can start in the middle (equivalent to add spaces at the beginning)
Example: ....D.
.A.C.E
..B... (One shift)
- It is possible to allow the spaces and punctuation, which shifts the characters.
None, Rail Fence is the original word, ZigZag is the mnemonic term.
Rail-Fence is a basic transposition, no date or creator is recognized.
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NB: for encrypted messages, test our automatic cipher identifier!
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