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Dead drop container
One of the larger devices that are used for a
dead drop,
or dead letter box,
is this aluminium container. A cylindrical concealment device with
rounded edges and a removable cap, much like a dead drop spike.
Like the spike, it is made of aluminium
and is fully watertight, but offers space for more and larger items.
Ideal for dead drops that are stored in moisty places or under water.
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The container shown here is about 22 cm long and has a diameter of 5 cm.
At the top, it has a large threaded cap with a rubber O-ring to make it
watertight. Inside the cylinder is a storage space that is
3.5 cm wide and 16 cm deep.
This makes the container not only suitable for documents,
money and One-Time Pads (OTP),
but also for objects like photo films,
equipment, invisible writing tools, ammunition, chemicals
and even a minox camera with accessories.
The cap has a hole for a string or a rope,
so that that it can easily be recovered from its hiding place.
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Containers like this come in various sizes, but the one shown here is
probably one of the most practical ones. It is small enough to be hidden
effectively and large enough to hold some objects. Like the spike it can
be pushed into the ground and covered by a couple of stones or some grass.
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Once the container was left at a secret location, the sender had to notify
the recipient that a message was waiting for him. This was usually done
by leaving a secret mark (signal) at at a predetermined place,
e.g. a horizontal line with red chalk at the side of a bench in the park.
The recipient then went to the secret location to collect the container
and its contents.
After that, he confirmed reception by leaving another secret mark at a
predetermined place.
This way, sender and recipient (or agent and handler)
never had to meet in person and were less likely to be caught.
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The image above shows how a
Minox BL subminiature spy camera
is stored inside the cylinder, along with films, a couple of
OTP booklets
for sending and receiving, and several other items.
This kind of dead drop is also suitable as a cache as it will protect
its contents not only for hours or days, but even for years if necessary.
The cylinder shown here was kindly donated by
Dereu & Sons Manufacturing Co. (US),
who produces high quality reproductions of dead drop spikes
and hollows coins.
They also make film props and custom concealments
for any kind of object [1].
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© Crypto Museum. Created: Sunday 06 September 2015. Last changed: Wednesday, 17 January 2018 - 18:13 CET.
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