{"version":1,"type":"story","url":"https://digestai.news/story/anthropics-claude-traces-ecdsa-curve-seeds-to-1990s-unix-timestamps","json":"https://digestai.news/story/anthropics-claude-traces-ecdsa-curve-seeds-to-1990s-unix-timestamps.json","markdown":"https://digestai.news/story/anthropics-claude-traces-ecdsa-curve-seeds-to-1990s-unix-timestamps.md","slug":"anthropics-claude-traces-ecdsa-curve-seeds-to-1990s-unix-timestamps","headline":"Anthropic’s Claude traces NIST ECDSA seeds to 1990s Unix timestamps","summary":"Anthropic’s Frontier Red Team published research on October 16, 2026, revealing that an internal Claude model traced the origins of NIST’s ECDSA curve seeds to the `lrand48` random-number generator in 1990s C libraries, seeded with Unix timestamps. The seeds, used in widely adopted cryptographic standards like FIPS 186-2, had remained unexplained since the NSA provided them in 2000 without context. The team found that five NIST prime-curve seeds and five ANSI X9.62 seeds originated from the same generator, with timestamps ranging from May 1997 to April 1998. Claude reconstructed the generator’s state using lattice reduction and verified the matches, confirming the seeds’ provenance without cryptographic vulnerabilities.\n\nThe findings close a decades-long mystery, though some questions persist. The team identified base points for six curves but could not explain the remaining ones. The research also notes skipped candidate seeds, though the team dismisses the possibility of deliberate selection. Anthropic emphasizes no security risks exist, as the method is reproducible and increases confidence in the curves’ integrity. The $36,864 bounty for solving the puzzle will be donated to the Internet Security Research Group.","keyPoints":["Claude traced NIST ECDSA seeds to `lrand48` generator in 1990s C libraries, seeded with Unix timestamps","Five NIST prime-curve seeds and five ANSI X9.62 seeds matched the same generator, dated May 1997–April 1998","Anthropic confirms no cryptographic weakness but leaves base points for some curves unexplained"],"whyItMatters":"The discovery clarifies a long-standing cryptographic mystery, reinforcing trust in widely used ECDSA standards without introducing vulnerabilities. It also demonstrates Claude’s ability to solve complex, real-world problems using reverse-engineering techniques.","category":{"slug":"research","name":"Research","url":"https://digestai.news/category/research"},"entities":{"companies":["Anthropic","NIST","NSA"],"models":["Claude"],"people":["Neal Koblitz","Alfred Menezes","Jerry Solinas","Bob Reiter","Arjen Lenstra","Victor Shoup"]},"firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-16T18:55:59Z","updatedAt":"2026-10-16T19:07:01Z","sourceCount":2,"hasPrimarySource":true,"sources":[{"outlet":"Unite.AI","title":"Anthropic Says Claude Traced NIST ECDSA Curve Seeds to a 1990S RNG","url":"https://unite.ai/anthropic-says-claude-traced-nist-ecdsa-curve-seeds-to-a-1990s-rng","publishedAt":"2026-10-16T19:07:01Z","type":"press","primary":false,"lead":true},{"outlet":"anthropic.com","title":"Claude reveals ECDSA curve origins","url":"https://anthropic.com/research/ecdsa-curve-origins","publishedAt":"2026-10-16T18:55:59Z","type":"primary","primary":true,"lead":false}],"sourceNotes":null,"discussions":[{"site":"Hacker News","url":"https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50122800","points":119}],"thread":null,"cite":{"text":"Digest AI, \"Anthropic’s Claude traces NIST ECDSA seeds to 1990s Unix timestamps\", 16 October 2026, https://digestai.news/story/anthropics-claude-traces-ecdsa-curve-seeds-to-1990s-unix-timestamps","publisher":"Digest AI","title":"Anthropic’s Claude traces NIST ECDSA seeds to 1990s Unix timestamps","datePublished":"2026-10-16T18:55:59Z","url":"https://digestai.news/story/anthropics-claude-traces-ecdsa-curve-seeds-to-1990s-unix-timestamps"},"generatedBy":"Written by Digest AI's editorial model from the linked sources; the sources are the record.","license":"Headlines, digests and key points are written by Digest AI and may be quoted with a link to the story page. Linked articles belong to their publishers. Terms: https://digestai.news/terms#reuse"}