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Russia FSB GRU
Ofline text encryptor
- wanted item
M-427, codenamed DERVISH (Russian: ДЕРВИШ),
is an online/offline encryption device
for text-based messages,
developed around 2000 in Russia.
The device allows secure communication over fixed networks, such as
analogue PSTN telephone lines and ad-hoc military field lines,
as well as mobile radio communication networks.
The RAZBEG (РАЗБЕГ) encryption algorithm uses a 512-bit
key that is held in a K1634DK4 (К1634ДК4)
key storage device that is inserted into the device.
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The CIK is a K1634DK4 (Russian: К1634ДК4)
key storage device in the shape of a plastic key,
that is also used with other Russian encryption devices,
such as the E-20 and E-20M voice and data terminals (crypto phones).
It is very similar (but not identical) to the KSD64
– made by the American manufacturer Datakey 2 – that was used with the
American STU-III crypto phones.
The M-427 was developed in parallel with the M-428 (also codenamed
DERVISH) in the early 2000s. It is part of a generation of machines that
mark the transition from electronic to microprocessor-based encryption
devices, influenced by foreign developments in this field.
Other machines in this category
are the M-207 (АРТИСТ), M-280
(ЮРИСТ), M-227 (ЗАСЕКА) and M-229 (ШПАГА), plus a miniature device
for the FSB and GRU.
According to Vasily Kristoforov of the Institute of Russian History
in Moscow, the above devices were still in use in May 2021 [8].
Devices like the M-427 may seem old school in the era of the
internet and personal computers (PCs), but have many advantages over
commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) equipment. They cannot be hacked and
are more resilient against electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attacks.
On 10 March 2022, photographs of an M-427 unit with an M-211 printer
surfaced on the internet, allegedly seized by
Ukrainian Forces from a Russian command post near Kiev (Ukraine) [1][2].
It is not clear whether this is indeed the case, or whether this is
misinformation, but it is certainly possible.
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In Islam, Dervish – also written as Derwish, Derwisj, Darvesh and
Darwïsh – refers to members of a Sufi fraternity.
➤ Wikipedia
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In an earlier version of this page, it was suggested that the K1634DK4
was manufacturerd by the American manufacturer Datakey, based on a
description of the E-20 crypto phone on the website of
supplier BNTI in Moscow [9].
According to the US company Datakey however, the K1634DK4
was not supplied by them [10].
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PLEASE HELP —
We are currently looking for additional information about this device,
such as manufacturer, year of manufacturing, specifications, accessories,
operating instructions and technical documentation, as well as the actual
device. If you can provide any of these, please contact us.
The block diagram below shows how the M-427 is used in practice.
The device consists of a core unit (CPU), keyboard, display,
tape reader, power supply unit (PSU) and several interfaces.
At the left are the external inputs: (1) the key tape and (2)
the CIK. At the right are the connections to the outside world:
(1) the M-211 for printing to paper and (2) the analogue telephone line.
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The display is part of the hinged top lid of the device. It is
currently unknown whether the device has a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD)
or a plasma display. Apart from the display, the top lid holds
several messages below and to the right of the display.
They are translated as follows:
(1) Below the display:
ВЕЗ ЗАЗЕМЛЕНИЯ НЕ ВКЛЮЧАТЬ ! WITHOUT GROUND, DO NOT POWER ON
(2) Right of the display (top):
➤ Conversion from punched tape to numbers
(3) Right of the display (centre):
ВИМАНИЕ ! ATTENTION !
СМЕНУ ПАРОЛЯ И КЛЮЧА ДОСТУПА CHANGE PASSWORD AND ACCESS KEY
ПРОИЗВОДОТЬ ТОЛЬКО ПРИ ONLY WHEN ON
БКЛЫЧЕННОМ АККУМУЛЯТОРЕ BATTERY POWER
(4) Right of the display (bottom):
ЗАПРЕШАЕТСЯ ЗАКРПЫВАТЬ ПАНЕЛЬ DO NOT CLOSE THE DISPLAY
ДИСПЛЕЯ ПРИ УСТАНОВЛЕНОМ PANEL WHEN THE K1634DK4
УСТРОЙСТВЕ К1634ДК4 DEVICE IS INSTALLED
The message under the display (1) indicates that the device must be
connected to ground at all times. This is probably an EMC or safety
measure. The message at the top right (2) was used to convert the key
number – punched into the tape as 5-bit digital data – to decimal
numbers. This procedure was also used with the earlier
M-205D cipher machine [5].
The message at the centre (3) urges the user to change the password
and the basic key only when the device is powered by a battery
(rather than a mains PSU). This was probably done to avoid
side channel leakage of data (TEMPEST).
The message at the bottom right (4) is just a note that the
display (i.e. the lid) cannot be closed when the CIK is
installed, as it might be damaged.
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It may seem strange that a device that was developed in the early 2000s
still has a 5-bit tape reader, but this is not unusual for military
equipment. Contrary to civil equipment, the life span of a military
device is much longer. It is possible, if not likely, that the tape reader was present
to maintain backwards compatibility with existing
telegraph equipment
(i.e. teleprinters or telex).
It is likely that the tape reader was also used for loading the daily
cryptographic key. Until recently (2018), punched paper tape was still
used for key distribution by Western Forces, in addition to electronic
transfer methods. A good example is the American KOI-18.
The advantage of a paper tape is that the key can have any length, as it is
not restricted by (software) protocols.
Devices like the KOI-18 were phased out
when it became clear that tape production would cease.
A good example of a Russian key tape procedure can be found
here [5]. This procedure is for
the less sophisticated M-205 cipher machine from the Soviet era,
but the procedure for the M-427 will not be very different.
Once the key is loaded, the key tape must be destroyed. The key is
then kept in the internal memory, encrypted with a randomly
generated Key Encryption Key (KEK).
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Crypto Ignition Key
К1634ДК4
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To the right of the keyboard – just behind the tape reader – is
a receptacle for a K1634DK4 (Russian: К1634ДК4)
key storage device [4], also known as DK4 (ДК4);
the same one as
used with the Russian E-20(M) crypto phone. This is
a physical plastic key which has the appearance of a toy key.
In reality it holds an EEPROM.
Supplier BNTI in Moscow refers to it as the Data Key. 1
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This key storage device is very similar, but not identical,
to the KSD-64 from Datakey 2 in the
United States, that was used with the
American STU-III crypto phone.
The number of contacts is different as well as the shape of the tip.
The DK4 key storage device can be used for a variety of things,
but in most cases it will be used for storing the Key Encryption Key
(KEK) — a randomly generated key that is used to encrypt the
daily key (loaded via the tape reader) before it is stored in memory
(see above).
This way, the key storage device is paired with the M-427.
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For this reason, the key storage device is also known as a
Crypto Ignition Key, or CIK. Without the CIK, the M-427
cannot be used, as the daily key is encrypted with the KEK.
In addition, the CIK cannot be used to enable another M-427
device, as it contains a randomly generatored KEK that will be
different from the KEK of another M-427. The KEK is
truely random, as it is generated by means of a noise diode.
In case security is compromised, all the operator has to do, is
remove the key and throw it away.
In adition, there will be a procedure to destroy the encrypted
daily key held inside the M-427. This procedure (usually pressing two
buttons) is known as zeroising.
➤ More about the KSD-64
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Not to be confused with the American manufacturer Datakey.
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In an earlier version of this page, it was suggested that the K1634DK4
was manufacturerd by the American manufacturer Datakey, based on a
description of the E-20 crypto phone on the website of
supplier BNTI in Moscow [9].
According to the US company Datakey however, the K1634DK4
was not supplied by them [10].
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When the M-427 was discovered in Ukraine,
there was also a box
marked УД-М211 (UD-M211) [1], which looks like a relic
from the Soviet era. It has a total
weight of 22 kg and contains a heavy ruggedised impact printer
made by LENPOLYGRAPHMASH (LPM) in St. Petersburg (Russia) [7].
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The УД-М printer is designed for use in harsh mechanical and climatic
conditions, in particular for use inside wheel & track vehicles
and aboard ships, and is guaranteed to work at all times [7].
It is compatible with the EPSON FX-80 dot matrix needle printer
and even accepts the FX-80 ink ribbons. 1
It supports the Latin and the Cyrillic alphabet, with the KOI-7 and
MTK-2
character sets. This particular version of the printer has a parallel
Centronics compatible interface, as well as an RS232 asynchronous
RS232 interface. The latter also supports the 5-bit MTK-2 standard.
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The UD-M range is still available from the manufacturer today (2022)
and can even be supplied with USB and Ethernet interfaces [7]. In addition,
the company manufactures inkjet and termal printers for use aboard military
vehicles and ships. The printers are supplied to the customers in a
wooden crate or in the Soviet-era metal storage case, that is still the
same after all these years.
➤ Download the manual (English)
➤ Download the manual (Russian)
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Also compatible with the EPSON LQ-800.
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To the right of the display is a conversion table that shows
the 10 digits (0-9), the corresponding letters of the Cyrillic
alphabet and the matching bit-pattern of the punched paper tape.
Strangely, the bit-pattern is printed the wrong way around
(compared to the layout of the tape reader). The table
conforms to the MTK-2 telegraph standard
and is as follows:
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Latin
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Russian
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Figure
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Bin
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Hex
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Q
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Я
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1
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101·11
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17
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W
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В
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2
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100·11
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13
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E
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Е
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3
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000·01
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01
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R
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Р
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4
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010·10
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0A
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T
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Т
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5
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100·00
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10
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Y
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Ы
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6
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101·01
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15
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U
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У
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7
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001·11
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07
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I
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И
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8
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001·10
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06
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O
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О
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9
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110·00
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18
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P
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П
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0
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101·10
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16
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This table corresponds to the upper row of keys of a Western (English or
American) teleprinter with a QWERTY layout. The reason for using a conversion
table is unclear, although it seems likely that it was used for conversion
from letters to numbers, in case the figure-shift (FIGS) characters was
omitted (or missed) in the received data stream.
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Model M-427 Type Text encryptor for telegraph and telephone networks Country Russia Years 2000 (est.) - ? Mains 220V AC, 50 Hz Battery 24-27V DC, external Tape reader 5-bit ITA-2 (MTK-2)
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Model UD-M211 (УД-М211) Type Impact (dot matrix) Speed 120 cps Resolution 240 x 144 dpi Interfaces Centronics
RS232C
MTK-2
Ethernet
USB 2 Paper A4, 210 mm wide roll Character set KOI-7 Ribbon Epson FX-80 Mains 220V AC Battery 21 to 34V DC Temperature -10°C to +55°C Dimension 455 x 440 x 235 (storage case)
355 x 345 x 117 mm (printer) Weight 22 kg (total)
< 14.5 kg (printer)
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Document kindly provided by anonymous donor [6].
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- Broken command post: Armed Forces seized secret equipment of the occupiers
Odessa8436 (Twitter), 9 March 2022.
- Segodnya, Armed Forces of Ukraine seized secret equipment of occupiers
Segodnya, Ukraine, 9 March 2022.
Ахуеть. Аппаратура шифрования М427
Livejournal, 10 March 2022 (page suspended later that day).
➤ Read this page from cache
- Roseltorg, Procurement for information carrier type DK-4
13 April 2011. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
- Jörg Drobick, Chiffriermaschine M-205 D
Website SAS und Chiffrierdienst. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
- Anonymous, UD-M211 printer handbooks - THANKS !
Received 11 march 2022.
- Matrix printer UDM series 1
Lenpolygraphmash (LPM). Retrieved 11 march 2022.
- Vasily Khristoforov, The centenary of the Cryptographic service Russian Federation: creation and development during the 20th century (Russian)
Russian State University for Humanities, Institute of Russian History, RAS.
Moscow, 7 May 2021. pp. 161-179, §48.
- BNTI, Secure speech and data terminal E-20
7 December 2005. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
- Paul Plitzuweit, Senior Product Manager Datakey
ATEK Access Technologies, LLC. Personal correspondence, April 2022.
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© Crypto Museum. Created: Thursday 10 March 2022. Last changed: Thursday, 30 June 2022 - 13:38 CET.
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![Opened M427 device. Photograph via Twitter [1]](img/m427_large.jpg)
![Opened M427 device. Photograph via Twitter [1]](img/m427_thumb.jpg "image # m427_large.jpg")
![Rear view of M427. Photograph via Twitter [1]](img/m427_rear_thumb.jpg "image # m427_rear_large.jpg")
![M-211 dot matrix printer in storage case. Photograph via Twitter [1]](img/m211_thumb.jpg "image # m211_large.jpg")
![UD-M211 impact printer [7]](img/udm2_thumb.jpg "image # udm2_large.jpg")
![Rear view of M427. Photograph via Twitter [1]](img/m427_rear_large.jpg)
![M-211 dot matrix printer in storage case. Photograph via Twitter [1]](img/m211_large.jpg)
![UD-M211 impact printer [7]](img/udm2_large.jpg)
![UD-M211 impact printer in wooden transport crate [7]](img/m211_crate_thumb.jpg "image # m211_crate.jpg")
![UD-M211 impact printer in metal storage case [7]](img/m211_case_thumb.jpg "image # m211_case.jpg")
![UD-M211 impact printer in wooden transport crate [7]](img/m211_crate.jpg)
![UD-M211 impact printer in metal storage case [7]](img/m211_case.jpg)