The Clandestine World of Numbers Stations,After the end of World War II and during the Cold War, the

The Clandestine World of Numbers Stations,After the end of World War II and during the Cold War, there was a drastic increase in a phenomenon now known as “numbers stations”.  Numbers stations are shortwave radio stations which broadcast exceedingly odd and unusual broadcasts, such as a long list of numbers, a random list of letters, or a nonsensical list of words or phrases. It was not uncommon for such broadcasts to interrupt the communications of ham radio operators, truck drivers, air traffic controller, and shortwave radio enthusiasts.  Speculation grew as to what these numbers stations were used for, but the sudden increase in such shortwave traffic during the Cold War leads to only one plausible conclusion; that they are clandestine coded broadcasts used by governments to communicate with spies and other intelligence agents.  Today there are a number of shortwave radio hobbyists whose past time is to locate and identify the source of these numbers stations.  With certain equipment it is possible to trace a shortwave radio signal to its source, and with a given location it can be quite easy to infer whose is making the broadcasts.  For example, one of the most popular numbers station, known as the “Lincolnshire Poacher Station”, was traced to the Royal Air Force Base in Akritiri, Cyprus.  Thus it is logical to assume that the British Government had some role in its broadcasts between 1988 and its closure in 2008.  Over several decades scores of stations have been identified belonging to the US, British, Russian/Soviet, Israeli, French, German, and numerous other governments. All of course, deny knowledge of such broadcasts.When the Cold War ended in 1989, the number of numbers stations decreased drastically.  While today numbers stations are still common, they are nowhere near as common as they were during the Cold War.  Along with the end of the Cold War, the invention of new communication methods which are more advanced and more secure could explain the decrease in the use of numbers stations.    More and more numbers stations are becoming commonly used by less powerful nations such as North Korea and Cuba.  Cuba especially has been known as a prolific shortwave radio user, albeit not a very effective one as dozens of Cuban spies have been rooted out and prosecuted using shortwave radio messages as evidence (see the Attencion Spy Case and The Miami Five).  In addition, many numbers stations today have been found to belong to non-governmental groups, such as rebel groups, freedom fighters, terrorists, drug cartels, and organized crime.  -- source link
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