Hutton Honors College

Fireside Chat with David Hatch,
Historian for the National Security Agency

Monday, Oct. 26, 2009 * 7-8:15 p.m. * HHC Great Room (811 E. Seventh St.) * No sign-up required!

How does the U.S. government collect Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) about foreign adversaries and prevent them from gaining access to classified national security communications? Join David Hatch, an IU alumnus and now the head historian for the National Security Agency, for a conversation about the history of the NSA, and its responsibilities within the U.S. government to protect the United States and its citizens. Hatch will speak about major accomplishments of the NSA during the Cold War and then take questions. The state of Indiana has produced a number of famous cryptologists, such as Herbert Yardley, the "father of American cryptology," and Hatch will also talk about several of these famous Hoosiers.

The NSA was established by President Truman in 1952 as part of the U.S. Department of Defense to collect foreign SIGINT. The breaking of German and Japanese codes was important to the success of the Allied powers during World War II, and the U.S. government believed establishing an agency devoted to breaking the codes of adversaries would prove useful in the postwar period as well. With the advent of the digital age and the thousandfold increase in the volume of phone and computer messages sent every minute, the challenge of trying to find one important digital message out of the terabytes of data circling the globe every minute has also grown. Aside from its offensive role, the current NSA is also in charge of Information Assurance, i.e., making sure sensitive U.S. government communications are protected.

This event is free and open to the public. No need to sign up!

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