RFC 1751 INFORMATIONAL SECURITY · CRYPTOGRAPHY · KEY MANAGEMENT

A Convention for Human-Readable 128-bit Keys

Use six simple English words instead of a 64-bit hex string, and twelve words for a 128-bit key.

On rfc-editor.org ↗
PUBLISHED
December 1994
AUTHORS
D. McDonald
STREAM
Legacy
DICTIONARY SIZE
2048 words
KEY SIZE
128 bits (12 words)
64-BIT REPRESENTATION
6 words
WORD LENGTH
1 to 4 characters
DOI
10.17487/RFC1751
ERRATA
Reported errata

RFC text

Contents
Original text · RFC Editor View on rfc-editor.org ↗
Network Working Group                                        D. McDonald
Request for Comments: 1751                                           NRL
Category: Informational                                    December 1994


              A Convention for Human-Readable 128-bit Keys

Status of this Memo

   This memo provides information for the Internet community.  This memo
   does not specify an Internet standard of any kind.  Distribution of
   the memo is unlimited.

Introduction

   The Internet community has begun to address matters of security.
   Recent standards, including version 2 of SNMP [GM93], have explicit
   requirements for an authentication mechanism.  These require use of a
   keyed message-digest algorithm, MD5 [Riv92], with a key size of 128-
   bits.  A 128-bit key, while sufficiently strong, is hard for most
   people to read, remember, and type in.  This memo proposes a
   convention for use with Internet applications & protocols using 128-
   bit cryptographic keys.

A Solution Already Exists

   The S/Key(tm) one-time password system [Hal94] uses MD4 (and now MD5,
   as well) to compute one-time passwords.  It takes the 128-bit result
   of MD4 and collapses it to a 64-bit result.  Despite the size
   reduction, 64-bit one-time passwords are still difficult for ordinary
   people to remember and enter.  The authors of S/Key devised a system
   to make the 64-bit one-time password easy for people to enter.

   Their idea was to transform the password into a string of small
   English words.  English words are significantly easier for people to
   both remember and type.  The authors of S/Key started with a
   dictionary of 2048 English words, ranging in length from one to four
   characters.  The space covered by a 64-bit key (2^64) could be
   covered by six words from this dictionary (2^66) with room remaining
   for parity.  For example, an S/Key one-time password of hex value:

                            EB33 F77E E73D 4053

   would become the following six English words:

                       TIDE ITCH SLOW REIN RULE MOT

   Because of the need for interoperability, it is undesirable to have
   different dictionaries for different languages.  Also, the current
   dictionary only uses characters from the invariant portion of ISO-
   646.  Finally, there is an installed base of users and applications
   with this dictionary.

The Proposal

   The code (see Appendix A) which S/Key uses to convert 64-bit numbers
   to six English words contains two primitives which perform
   conversions either way.  The primitive btoe(char *engout,char *c)
   takes a 64-bit quantity referenced by c and places English words in
   the string referenced by engout.  The primitive etob(char *out,char
   *e) performs the opposite with an input string of English words
   referenced by e, and by placing the 64-bit result into the buffer
   referenced by out.

   The aforementioned primitives can be applied to both halves of a
   128-bit key, or both halves of a string of twelve English words.  Two
   new primitives (see Appendix B), key2eng(char *engout,char *key) and
   eng2key(char *keyout,char *eng) serve as wrappers which call the
   S/Key primitives twice, once for each half of the 128-bit key or
   string of twelve words.

   For example, the 128-bit key of:

                  CCAC 2AED 5910 56BE 4F90 FD44 1C53 4766

   would become

         RASH BUSH MILK LOOK BAD BRIM AVID GAFF BAIT ROT POD LOVE

   Likewise, a user should be able to type in

          TROD MUTE TAIL WARM CHAR KONG HAAG CITY BORE O TEAL AWL

   as a key, and the machine should make the translation to:

                  EFF8 1F9B FBC6 5350 920C DD74 16DE 8009

   If this proposal is to work, it is critical that the dictionary of
   English words does not change with different implementations.  A
   freely redistributable reference implementation is given in
   Appendices A and B.

Security Considerations

   This document recommends a method of representing 128-bit keys using
   strings of English words.  Since the strings of English words are
   easy to remember, people may potentially construct easy-to-guess
   strings of English words.  With easy-to-guess strings comes the
   possibility of a sentential equivalent of a dictionary attack.  In
   order to maximize the strength of any authentication mechanism that
   uses 128-bit keys, the keys must be sufficiently obscure.  In
   particular, people should avoid the temptation to devise sentences.

Acknowledgements

   S/Key is a registered trademark of Bell Communications Research.

   Thanks to Randall Atkinson for the bulk of the security
   considerations section, and for general advice.  Thanks to Phil Karn
   and Neil Haller for producing the S/Key one-time password system,
   which inspired this document.

References

   [GM93]  Galvin, J. and K. McCloghrie, "Security Protocols for version
   2 of the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMPv2)", RFC 1446,
   Trusted Information Systems, Hughes LAN Systems, April 1993.

   [Hal94]  Haller, N., "The S/Key(tm) One-Time Password System",
   Proceedings of the Symposium on Network & Distributed Systems
   Security, Internet Society, San Diego, February 1994.

   [Riv92]  Rivest, R., "The MD5 Message-Digest Algorithm", RFC 1321,
   MIT Laboratory for Computer Science and RSA Data Security, Inc.,
   April 1992.

Author's Address

   Daniel L. McDonald
   United States Naval Research Laboratory
   Code 5544
   4555 Overlook Ave. SW
   Washington, DC 20375

   Phone:  (202) 404-7122
   EMail:  danmcd@itd.nrl.navy.mil

Appendix A - Source for S/Key 8-bytes to/from Words Routines (put.c)

/* This code originally appeared in the source for S/Key(TM),
 * available in the directory
 *   ftp://thumper.bellcore.com/pub/nmh
 *
 * It has been modified only to remove explicit S/Key(TM) references.
 */

#include <stdio.h>
#include <string.h>
#include <assert.h>
#include <ctype.h>

#ifdef __STDC__
#define __ARGS(x) x
#else
#define __ARGS(x) ()
#endif

static unsigned long extract __ARGS((char *s,int start,int length));
static void standard __ARGS((char *word));
static void insert __ARGS((char *s, int x, int start, int length));
static int wsrch __ARGS((char *w,int low,int high));

/* Dictionary for integer-word translations */
char Wp[2048][4] = { "A", "ABE", "ACE", "ACT", "AD", "ADA", "ADD",
"AGO", "AID", "AIM", "AIR", "ALL", "ALP", "AM", "AMY", "AN", "ANA",
"AND", "ANN", "ANT", "ANY", "APE", "APS", "APT", "ARC", "ARE", "ARK",
"ARM", "ART", "AS", "ASH", "ASK", "AT", "ATE", "AUG", "AUK", "AVE",
"AWE", "AWK", "AWL", "AWN", "AX", "AYE", "BAD", "BAG", "BAH", "BAM",
"BAN", "BAR", "BAT", "BAY", "BE", "BED", "BEE", "BEG", "BEN", "BET",
"BEY", "BIB", "BID", "BIG", "BIN", "BIT", "BOB", "BOG", "BON", "BOO",
"BOP", "BOW", "BOY", "BUB", "BUD", "BUG", "BUM", "BUN", "BUS", "BUT",
"BUY", "BY", "BYE", "CAB", "CAL", "CAM", "CAN", "CAP", "CAR", "CAT",
"CAW", "COD", "COG", "COL", "CON", "COO", "COP", "COT", "COW", "COY",
"CRY", "CUB", "CUE", "CUP", "CUR", "CUT", "DAB", "DAD", "DAM", "DAN",
"DAR", "DAY", "DEE", "DEL", "DEN", "DES", "DEW", "DID", "DIE", "DIG",
"DIN", "DIP", "DO", "DOE", "DOG", "DON", "DOT", "DOW", "DRY", "DUB",
"DUD", "DUE", "DUG", "DUN", "EAR", "EAT", "ED", "EEL", "EGG", "EGO",
"ELI", "ELK", "ELM", "ELY", "EM", "END", "EST", "ETC", "EVA", "EVE",
"EWE", "EYE", "FAD", "FAN", "FAR", "FAT", "FAY", "FED", "FEE", "FEW",
"FIB", "FIG", "FIN", "FIR", "FIT", "FLO", "FLY", "FOE", "FOG", "FOR",
"FRY", "FUM", "FUN", "FUR", "GAB", "GAD", "GAG", "GAL", "GAM", "GAP",
"GAS", "GAY", "GEE", "GEL", "GEM", "GET", "GIG", "GIL", "GIN", "GO",
"GOT", "GUM", "GUN", "GUS", "GUT", "GUY", "GYM", "GYP", "HA", "HAD",
"HAL", "HAM", "HAN", "HAP", "HAS", "HAT", "HAW", "HAY", "HE", "HEM",
"HEN", "HER", "HEW", "HEY", "HI", "HID", "HIM", "HIP", "HIS", "HIT",

"HO", "HOB", "HOC", "HOE", "HOG", "HOP", "HOT", "HOW", "HUB", "HUE",
"HUG", "HUH", "HUM", "HUT", "I", "ICY", "IDA", "IF", "IKE", "ILL",
"INK", "INN", "IO", "ION", "IQ", "IRA", "IRE", "IRK", "IS", "IT", "ITS",
"IVY", "JAB", "JAG", "JAM", "JAN", "JAR", "JAW", "JAY", "JET", "JIG",
"JIM", "JO", "JOB", "JOE", "JOG", "JOT", "JOY", "JUG", "JUT", "KAY",
"KEG", "KEN", "KEY", "KID", "KIM", "KIN", "KIT", "LA", "LAB", "LAC",
"LAD", "LAG", "LAM", "LAP", "LAW", "LAY", "LEA", "LED", "LEE", "LEG",
"LEN", "LEO", "LET", "LEW", "LID", "LIE", "LIN", "LIP", "LIT", "LO",
"LOB", "LOG", "LOP", "LOS", "LOT", "LOU", "LOW", "LOY", "LUG", "LYE",
"MA", "MAC", "MAD", "MAE", "MAN", "MAO", "MAP", "MAT", "MAW", "MAY",
"ME", "MEG", "MEL", "MEN", "MET", "MEW", "MID", "MIN", "MIT", "MOB",
"MOD", "MOE", "MOO", "MOP", "MOS", "MOT", "MOW", "MUD", "MUG", "MUM",
"MY", "NAB", "NAG", "NAN", "NAP", "NAT", "NAY", "NE", "NED", "NEE",
"NET", "NEW", "NIB", "NIL", "NIP", "NIT", "NO", "NOB", "NOD", "NON",
"NOR", "NOT", "NOV", "NOW", "NU", "NUN", "NUT", "O", "OAF", "OAK",
"OAR", "OAT", "ODD", "ODE", "OF", "OFF", "OFT", "OH", "OIL", "OK",
"OLD", "ON", "ONE", "OR", "ORB", "ORE", "ORR", "OS", "OTT", "OUR",
"OUT", "OVA", "OW", "OWE", "OWL", "OWN", "OX", "PA", "PAD", "PAL",
"PAM", "PAN", "PAP", "PAR", "PAT", "PAW", "PAY", "PEA", "PEG", "PEN",
"PEP", "PER", "PET", "PEW", "PHI", "PI", "PIE", "PIN", "PIT", "PLY",
"PO", "POD", "POE", "POP", "POT", "POW", "PRO", "PRY", "PUB", "PUG",
"PUN", "PUP", "PUT", "QUO", "RAG", "RAM", "RAN", "RAP", "RAT", "RAW",
"RAY", "REB", "RED", "REP", "RET", "RIB", "RID", "RIG", "RIM", "RIO",
"RIP", "ROB", "ROD", "ROE", "RON", "ROT", "ROW", "ROY", "RUB", "RUE",
"RUG", "RUM", "RUN", "RYE", "SAC", "SAD", "SAG", "SAL", "SAM", "SAN",
"SAP", "SAT", "SAW", "SAY", "SEA", "SEC", "SEE", "SEN", "SET", "SEW",
"SHE", "SHY", "SIN", "SIP", "SIR", "SIS", "SIT", "SKI", "SKY", "SLY",
"SO", "SOB", "SOD", "SON", "SOP", "SOW", "SOY", "SPA", "SPY", "SUB",
"SUD", "SUE", "SUM", "SUN", "SUP", "TAB", "TAD", "TAG", "TAN", "TAP",
"TAR", "TEA", "TED", "TEE", "TEN", "THE", "THY", "TIC", "TIE", "TIM",
"TIN", "TIP", "TO", "TOE", "TOG", "TOM", "TON", "TOO", "TOP", "TOW",
"TOY", "TRY", "TUB", "TUG", "TUM", "TUN", "TWO", "UN", "UP", "US",
"USE", "VAN", "VAT", "VET", "VIE", "WAD", "WAG", "WAR", "WAS", "WAY",
"WE", "WEB", "WED", "WEE", "WET", "WHO", "WHY", "WIN", "WIT", "WOK",
"WON", "WOO", "WOW", "WRY", "WU", "YAM", "YAP", "YAW", "YE", "YEA",
"YES", "YET", "YOU", "ABED", "ABEL", "ABET", "ABLE", "ABUT", "ACHE",
"ACID", "ACME", "ACRE", "ACTA", "ACTS", "ADAM", "ADDS", "ADEN", "AFAR",
"AFRO", "AGEE", "AHEM", "AHOY", "AIDA", "AIDE", "AIDS", "AIRY", "AJAR",
"AKIN", "ALAN", "ALEC", "ALGA", "ALIA", "ALLY", "ALMA", "ALOE", "ALSO",
"ALTO", "ALUM", "ALVA", "AMEN", "AMES", "AMID", "AMMO", "AMOK", "AMOS",
"AMRA", "ANDY", "ANEW", "ANNA", "ANNE", "ANTE", "ANTI", "AQUA", "ARAB",
"ARCH", "AREA", "ARGO", "ARID", "ARMY", "ARTS", "ARTY", "ASIA", "ASKS",
"ATOM", "AUNT", "AURA", "AUTO", "AVER", "AVID", "AVIS", "AVON", "AVOW",
"AWAY", "AWRY", "BABE", "BABY", "BACH", "BACK", "BADE", "BAIL", "BAIT",
"BAKE", "BALD", "BALE", "BALI", "BALK", "BALL", "BALM", "BAND", "BANE",
"BANG", "BANK", "BARB", "BARD", "BARE", "BARK", "BARN", "BARR", "BASE",
"BASH", "BASK", "BASS", "BATE", "BATH", "BAWD", "BAWL", "BEAD", "BEAK",
"BEAM", "BEAN", "BEAR", "BEAT", "BEAU", "BECK", "BEEF", "BEEN", "BEER",

"BEET", "BELA", "BELL", "BELT", "BEND", "BENT", "BERG", "BERN", "BERT",
"BESS", "BEST", "BETA", "BETH", "BHOY", "BIAS", "BIDE", "BIEN", "BILE",
"BILK", "BILL", "BIND", "BING", "BIRD", "BITE", "BITS", "BLAB", "BLAT",
"BLED", "BLEW", "BLOB", "BLOC", "BLOT", "BLOW", "BLUE", "BLUM", "BLUR",
"BOAR", "BOAT", "BOCA", "BOCK", "BODE", "BODY", "BOGY", "BOHR", "BOIL",
"BOLD", "BOLO", "BOLT", "BOMB", "BONA", "BOND", "BONE", "BONG", "BONN",
"BONY", "BOOK", "BOOM", "BOON", "BOOT", "BORE", "BORG", "BORN", "BOSE",
"BOSS", "BOTH", "BOUT", "BOWL", "BOYD", "BRAD", "BRAE", "BRAG", "BRAN",
"BRAY", "BRED", "BREW", "BRIG", "BRIM", "BROW", "BUCK", "BUDD", "BUFF",
"BULB", "BULK", "BULL", "BUNK", "BUNT", "BUOY", "BURG", "BURL", "BURN",
"BURR", "BURT", "BURY", "BUSH", "BUSS", "BUST", "BUSY", "BYTE", "CADY",
"CAFE", "CAGE", "CAIN", "CAKE", "CALF", "CALL", "CALM", "CAME", "CANE",
"CANT", "CARD", "CARE", "CARL", "CARR", "CART", "CASE", "CASH", "CASK",
"CAST", "CAVE", "CEIL", "CELL", "CENT", "CERN", "CHAD", "CHAR", "CHAT",
"CHAW", "CHEF", "CHEN", "CHEW", "CHIC", "CHIN", "CHOU", "CHOW", "CHUB",
"CHUG", "CHUM", "CITE", "CITY", "CLAD", "CLAM", "CLAN", "CLAW", "CLAY",
"CLOD", "CLOG", "CLOT", "CLUB", "CLUE", "COAL", "COAT", "COCA", "COCK",
"COCO", "CODA", "CODE", "CODY", "COED", "COIL", "COIN", "COKE", "COLA",
"COLD", "COLT", "COMA", "COMB", "COME", "COOK", "COOL", "COON", "COOT",
"CORD", "CORE", "CORK", "CORN", "COST", "COVE", "COWL", "CRAB", "CRAG",
"CRAM", "CRAY", "CREW", "CRIB", "CROW", "CRUD", "CUBA", "CUBE", "CUFF",
"CULL", "CULT", "CUNY", "CURB", "CURD", "CURE", "CURL", "CURT", "CUTS",
"DADE", "DALE", "DAME", "DANA", "DANE", "DANG", "DANK", "DARE", "DARK",
"DARN", "DART", "DASH", "DATA", "DATE", "DAVE", "DAVY", "DAWN", "DAYS",
"DEAD", "DEAF", "DEAL", "DEAN", "DEAR", "DEBT", "DECK", "DEED", "DEEM",
"DEER", "DEFT", "DEFY", "DELL", "DENT", "DENY", "DESK", "DIAL", "DICE",
"DIED", "DIET", "DIME", "DINE", "DING", "DINT", "DIRE", "DIRT", "DISC",
"DISH", "DISK", "DIVE", "DOCK", "DOES", "DOLE", "DOLL", "DOLT", "DOME",
"DONE", "DOOM", "DOOR", "DORA", "DOSE", "DOTE", "DOUG", "DOUR", "DOVE",
"DOWN", "DRAB", "DRAG", "DRAM", "DRAW", "DREW", "DRUB", "DRUG", "DRUM",
"DUAL", "DUCK", "DUCT", "DUEL", "DUET", "DUKE", "DULL", "DUMB", "DUNE",
"DUNK", "DUSK", "DUST", "DUTY", "EACH", "EARL", "EARN", "EASE", "EAST",
"EASY", "EBEN", "ECHO", "EDDY", "EDEN", "EDGE", "EDGY", "EDIT", "EDNA",
"EGAN", "ELAN", "ELBA", "ELLA", "ELSE", "EMIL", "EMIT", "EMMA", "ENDS",
"ERIC", "EROS", "EVEN", "EVER", "EVIL", "EYED", "FACE", "FACT", "FADE",
"FAIL", "FAIN", "FAIR", "FAKE", "FALL", "FAME", "FANG", "FARM", "FAST",
"FATE", "FAWN", "FEAR", "FEAT", "FEED", "FEEL", "FEET", "FELL", "FELT",
"FEND", "FERN", "FEST", "FEUD", "FIEF", "FIGS", "FILE", "FILL", "FILM",
"FIND", "FINE", "FINK", "FIRE", "FIRM", "FISH", "FISK", "FIST", "FITS",
"FIVE", "FLAG", "FLAK", "FLAM", "FLAT", "FLAW", "FLEA", "FLED", "FLEW",
"FLIT", "FLOC", "FLOG", "FLOW", "FLUB", "FLUE", "FOAL", "FOAM", "FOGY",
"FOIL", "FOLD", "FOLK", "FOND", "FONT", "FOOD", "FOOL", "FOOT", "FORD",
"FORE", "FORK", "FORM", "FORT", "FOSS", "FOUL", "FOUR", "FOWL", "FRAU",
"FRAY", "FRED", "FREE", "FRET", "FREY", "FROG", "FROM", "FUEL", "FULL",
"FUME", "FUND", "FUNK", "FURY", "FUSE", "FUSS", "GAFF", "GAGE", "GAIL",
"GAIN", "GAIT", "GALA", "GALE", "GALL", "GALT", "GAME", "GANG", "GARB",
"GARY", "GASH", "GATE", "GAUL", "GAUR", "GAVE", "GAWK", "GEAR", "GELD",
"GENE", "GENT", "GERM", "GETS", "GIBE", "GIFT", "GILD", "GILL", "GILT",

"GINA", "GIRD", "GIRL", "GIST", "GIVE", "GLAD", "GLEE", "GLEN", "GLIB",
"GLOB", "GLOM", "GLOW", "GLUE", "GLUM", "GLUT", "GOAD", "GOAL", "GOAT",
"GOER", "GOES", "GOLD", "GOLF", "GONE", "GONG", "GOOD", "GOOF", "GORE",
"GORY", "GOSH", "GOUT", "GOWN", "GRAB", "GRAD", "GRAY", "GREG", "GREW",
"GREY", "GRID", "GRIM", "GRIN", "GRIT", "GROW", "GRUB", "GULF", "GULL",
"GUNK", "GURU", "GUSH", "GUST", "GWEN", "GWYN", "HAAG", "HAAS", "HACK",
"HAIL", "HAIR", "HALE", "HALF", "HALL", "HALO", "HALT", "HAND", "HANG",
"HANK", "HANS", "HARD", "HARK", "HARM", "HART", "HASH", "HAST", "HATE",
"HATH", "HAUL", "HAVE", "HAWK", "HAYS", "HEAD", "HEAL", "HEAR", "HEAT",
"HEBE", "HECK", "HEED", "HEEL", "HEFT", "HELD", "HELL", "HELM", "HERB",
"HERD", "HERE", "HERO", "HERS", "HESS", "HEWN", "HICK", "HIDE", "HIGH",
"HIKE", "HILL", "HILT", "HIND", "HINT", "HIRE", "HISS", "HIVE", "HOBO",
"HOCK", "HOFF", "HOLD", "HOLE", "HOLM", "HOLT", "HOME", "HONE", "HONK",
"HOOD", "HOOF", "HOOK", "HOOT", "HORN", "HOSE", "HOST", "HOUR", "HOVE",
"HOWE", "HOWL", "HOYT", "HUCK", "HUED", "HUFF", "HUGE", "HUGH", "HUGO",
"HULK", "HULL", "HUNK", "HUNT", "HURD", "HURL", "HURT", "HUSH", "HYDE",
"HYMN", "IBIS", "ICON", "IDEA", "IDLE", "IFFY", "INCA", "INCH", "INTO",
"IONS", "IOTA", "IOWA", "IRIS", "IRMA", "IRON", "ISLE", "ITCH", "ITEM",
"IVAN", "JACK", "JADE", "JAIL", "JAKE", "JANE", "JAVA", "JEAN", "JEFF",
"JERK", "JESS", "JEST", "JIBE", "JILL", "JILT", "JIVE", "JOAN", "JOBS",
"JOCK", "JOEL", "JOEY", "JOHN", "JOIN", "JOKE", "JOLT", "JOVE", "JUDD",
"JUDE", "JUDO", "JUDY", "JUJU", "JUKE", "JULY", "JUNE", "JUNK", "JUNO",
"JURY", "JUST", "JUTE", "KAHN", "KALE", "KANE", "KANT", "KARL", "KATE",
"KEEL", "KEEN", "KENO", "KENT", "KERN", "KERR", "KEYS", "KICK", "KILL",
"KIND", "KING", "KIRK", "KISS", "KITE", "KLAN", "KNEE", "KNEW", "KNIT",
"KNOB", "KNOT", "KNOW", "KOCH", "KONG", "KUDO", "KURD", "KURT", "KYLE",
"LACE", "LACK", "LACY", "LADY", "LAID", "LAIN", "LAIR", "LAKE", "LAMB",
"LAME", "LAND", "LANE", "LANG", "LARD", "LARK", "LASS", "LAST", "LATE",
"LAUD", "LAVA", "LAWN", "LAWS", "LAYS", "LEAD", "LEAF", "LEAK", "LEAN",
"LEAR", "LEEK", "LEER", "LEFT", "LEND", "LENS", "LENT", "LEON", "LESK",
"LESS", "LEST", "LETS", "LIAR", "LICE", "LICK", "LIED", "LIEN", "LIES",
"LIEU", "LIFE", "LIFT", "LIKE", "LILA", "LILT", "LILY", "LIMA", "LIMB",
"LIME", "LIND", "LINE", "LINK", "LINT", "LION", "LISA", "LIST", "LIVE",
"LOAD", "LOAF", "LOAM", "LOAN", "LOCK", "LOFT", "LOGE", "LOIS", "LOLA",
"LONE", "LONG", "LOOK", "LOON", "LOOT", "LORD", "LORE", "LOSE", "LOSS",
"LOST", "LOUD", "LOVE", "LOWE", "LUCK", "LUCY", "LUGE", "LUKE", "LULU",
"LUND", "LUNG", "LURA", "LURE", "LURK", "LUSH", "LUST", "LYLE", "LYNN",
"LYON", "LYRA", "MACE", "MADE", "MAGI", "MAID", "MAIL", "MAIN", "MAKE",
"MALE", "MALI", "MALL", "MALT", "MANA", "MANN", "MANY", "MARC", "MARE",
"MARK", "MARS", "MART", "MARY", "MASH", "MASK", "MASS", "MAST", "MATE",
"MATH", "MAUL", "MAYO", "MEAD", "MEAL", "MEAN", "MEAT", "MEEK", "MEET",
"MELD", "MELT", "MEMO", "MEND", "MENU", "MERT", "MESH", "MESS", "MICE",
"MIKE", "MILD", "MILE", "MILK", "MILL", "MILT", "MIMI", "MIND", "MINE",
"MINI", "MINK", "MINT", "MIRE", "MISS", "MIST", "MITE", "MITT", "MOAN",
"MOAT", "MOCK", "MODE", "MOLD", "MOLE", "MOLL", "MOLT", "MONA", "MONK",
"MONT", "MOOD", "MOON", "MOOR", "MOOT", "MORE", "MORN", "MORT", "MOSS",
"MOST", "MOTH", "MOVE", "MUCH", "MUCK", "MUDD", "MUFF", "MULE", "MULL",
"MURK", "MUSH", "MUST", "MUTE", "MUTT", "MYRA", "MYTH", "NAGY", "NAIL",

"NAIR", "NAME", "NARY", "NASH", "NAVE", "NAVY", "NEAL", "NEAR", "NEAT",
"NECK", "NEED", "NEIL", "NELL", "NEON", "NERO", "NESS", "NEST", "NEWS",
"NEWT", "NIBS", "NICE", "NICK", "NILE", "NINA", "NINE", "NOAH", "NODE",
"NOEL", "NOLL", "NONE", "NOOK", "NOON", "NORM", "NOSE", "NOTE", "NOUN",
"NOVA", "NUDE", "NULL", "NUMB", "OATH", "OBEY", "OBOE", "ODIN", "OHIO",
"OILY", "OINT", "OKAY", "OLAF", "OLDY", "OLGA", "OLIN", "OMAN", "OMEN",
"OMIT", "ONCE", "ONES", "ONLY", "ONTO", "ONUS", "ORAL", "ORGY", "OSLO",
"OTIS", "OTTO", "OUCH", "OUST", "OUTS", "OVAL", "OVEN", "OVER", "OWLY",
"OWNS", "QUAD", "QUIT", "QUOD", "RACE", "RACK", "RACY", "RAFT", "RAGE",
"RAID", "RAIL", "RAIN", "RAKE", "RANK", "RANT", "RARE", "RASH", "RATE",
"RAVE", "RAYS", "READ", "REAL", "REAM", "REAR", "RECK", "REED", "REEF",
"REEK", "REEL", "REID", "REIN", "RENA", "REND", "RENT", "REST", "RICE",
"RICH", "RICK", "RIDE", "RIFT", "RILL", "RIME", "RING", "RINK", "RISE",
"RISK", "RITE", "ROAD", "ROAM", "ROAR", "ROBE", "ROCK", "RODE", "ROIL",
"ROLL", "ROME", "ROOD", "ROOF", "ROOK", "ROOM", "ROOT", "ROSA", "ROSE",
"ROSS", "ROSY", "ROTH", "ROUT", "ROVE", "ROWE", "ROWS", "RUBE", "RUBY",
"RUDE", "RUDY", "RUIN", "RULE", "RUNG", "RUNS", "RUNT", "RUSE", "RUSH",
"RUSK", "RUSS", "RUST", "RUTH", "SACK", "SAFE", "SAGE", "SAID", "SAIL",
"SALE", "SALK", "SALT", "SAME", "SAND", "SANE", "SANG", "SANK", "SARA",
"SAUL", "SAVE", "SAYS", "SCAN", "SCAR", "SCAT", "SCOT", "SEAL", "SEAM",
"SEAR", "SEAT", "SEED", "SEEK", "SEEM", "SEEN", "SEES", "SELF", "SELL",
"SEND", "SENT", "SETS", "SEWN", "SHAG", "SHAM", "SHAW", "SHAY", "SHED",
"SHIM", "SHIN", "SHOD", "SHOE", "SHOT", "SHOW", "SHUN", "SHUT", "SICK",
"SIDE", "SIFT", "SIGH", "SIGN", "SILK", "SILL", "SILO", "SILT", "SINE",
"SING", "SINK", "SIRE", "SITE", "SITS", "SITU", "SKAT", "SKEW", "SKID",
"SKIM", "SKIN", "SKIT", "SLAB", "SLAM", "SLAT", "SLAY", "SLED", "SLEW",
"SLID", "SLIM", "SLIT", "SLOB", "SLOG", "SLOT", "SLOW", "SLUG", "SLUM",
"SLUR", "SMOG", "SMUG", "SNAG", "SNOB", "SNOW", "SNUB", "SNUG", "SOAK",
"SOAR", "SOCK", "SODA", "SOFA", "SOFT", "SOIL", "SOLD", "SOME", "SONG",
"SOON", "SOOT", "SORE", "SORT", "SOUL", "SOUR", "SOWN", "STAB", "STAG",
"STAN", "STAR", "STAY", "STEM", "STEW", "STIR", "STOW", "STUB", "STUN",
"SUCH", "SUDS", "SUIT", "SULK", "SUMS", "SUNG", "SUNK", "SURE", "SURF",
"SWAB", "SWAG", "SWAM", "SWAN", "SWAT", "SWAY", "SWIM", "SWUM", "TACK",
"TACT", "TAIL", "TAKE", "TALE", "TALK", "TALL", "TANK", "TASK", "TATE",
"TAUT", "TEAL", "TEAM", "TEAR", "TECH", "TEEM", "TEEN", "TEET", "TELL",
"TEND", "TENT", "TERM", "TERN", "TESS", "TEST", "THAN", "THAT", "THEE",
"THEM", "THEN", "THEY", "THIN", "THIS", "THUD", "THUG", "TICK", "TIDE",
"TIDY", "TIED", "TIER", "TILE", "TILL", "TILT", "TIME", "TINA", "TINE",
"TINT", "TINY", "TIRE", "TOAD", "TOGO", "TOIL", "TOLD", "TOLL", "TONE",
"TONG", "TONY", "TOOK", "TOOL", "TOOT", "TORE", "TORN", "TOTE", "TOUR",
"TOUT", "TOWN", "TRAG", "TRAM", "TRAY", "TREE", "TREK", "TRIG", "TRIM",
"TRIO", "TROD", "TROT", "TROY", "TRUE", "TUBA", "TUBE", "TUCK", "TUFT",
"TUNA", "TUNE", "TUNG", "TURF", "TURN", "TUSK", "TWIG", "TWIN", "TWIT",
"ULAN", "UNIT", "URGE", "USED", "USER", "USES", "UTAH", "VAIL", "VAIN",
"VALE", "VARY", "VASE", "VAST", "VEAL", "VEDA", "VEIL", "VEIN", "VEND",
"VENT", "VERB", "VERY", "VETO", "VICE", "VIEW", "VINE", "VISE", "VOID",
"VOLT", "VOTE", "WACK", "WADE", "WAGE", "WAIL", "WAIT", "WAKE", "WALE",
"WALK", "WALL", "WALT", "WAND", "WANE", "WANG", "WANT", "WARD", "WARM",

"WARN", "WART", "WASH", "WAST", "WATS", "WATT", "WAVE", "WAVY", "WAYS",
"WEAK", "WEAL", "WEAN", "WEAR", "WEED", "WEEK", "WEIR", "WELD", "WELL",
"WELT", "WENT", "WERE", "WERT", "WEST", "WHAM", "WHAT", "WHEE", "WHEN",
"WHET", "WHOA", "WHOM", "WICK", "WIFE", "WILD", "WILL", "WIND", "WINE",
"WING", "WINK", "WINO", "WIRE", "WISE", "WISH", "WITH", "WOLF", "WONT",
"WOOD", "WOOL", "WORD", "WORE", "WORK", "WORM", "WORN", "WOVE", "WRIT",
"WYNN", "YALE", "YANG", "YANK", "YARD", "YARN", "YAWL", "YAWN", "YEAH",
"YEAR", "YELL", "YOGA", "YOKE"
};

/* Encode 8 bytes in 'c' as a string of English words.
 * Returns a pointer to a static buffer
 */
char *
btoe(engout,c)
char *c, *engout;
{
        char cp[9];     /* add in room for the parity 2 bits*/
        int p,i ;

        engout[0] = '\0';
        memcpy(cp, c,8);
        /* compute parity */
        for(p = 0,i = 0; i < 64;i += 2)
                p += extract(cp,i,2);

        cp[8] = (char)p << 6;
        strncat(engout,&Wp[extract(cp, 0,11)][0],4);
        strcat(engout," ");
        strncat(engout,&Wp[extract(cp,11,11)][0],4);
        strcat(engout," ");
        strncat(engout,&Wp[extract(cp,22,11)][0],4);
        strcat(engout," ");
        strncat(engout,&Wp[extract(cp,33,11)][0],4);
        strcat(engout," ");
        strncat(engout,&Wp[extract(cp,44,11)][0],4);
        strcat(engout," ");
        strncat(engout,&Wp[extract(cp,55,11)][0],4);
#ifdef  notdef
        printf("engout is %s\n\r",engout);
#endif
        return(engout);
}

/* convert English to binary
 * returns 1 OK - all good words and parity is OK
 *         0 word not in data base
 *        -1 badly formed in put ie > 4 char word
 *        -2 words OK but parity is wrong
 */
int
etob(out, e)
char *out;
char *e;
{
        char *word;
        int i, p, v,l, low,high;
        char b[9];
        char input[36];

        if(e == NULL)
                return -1;

        strncpy(input,e,sizeof(input));
        memset(b, 0, sizeof(b));
        memset(out, 0, 8);
        for(i=0,p=0;i<6;i++,p+=11){
                if((word = strtok(i == 0 ? input : NULL," ")) == NULL)
                        return -1;
                l = strlen(word);
                if(l > 4 || l < 1){
                        return -1;
                } else if(l < 4){
                        low = 0;
                        high = 570;
                } else {
                        low = 571;
                        high = 2047;
                }
                standard(word);
                if( (v = wsrch(word,low,high)) < 0 )
                        return 0;
                insert(b,v,p,11);
        }

        /* now check the parity of what we got */
        for(p = 0, i = 0; i < 64; i +=2)
                p += extract(b, i, 2);

        if( (p & 3) != extract(b, 64,2) )
                return -2;

        memcpy(out,b,8);

        return 1;
}

/* Display 8 bytes as a series of 16-bit hex digits */
char *
put8(out,s)
char *out;
char *s;
{
        sprintf(out,"%02X%02X %02X%02X %02X%02X %02X%02X",
                s[0] & 0xff,s[1] & 0xff,s[2] & 0xff,
                s[3] & 0xff,s[4] & 0xff,s[5] & 0xff,
                s[6] & 0xff,s[7] & 0xff);
        return out;
}
#ifdef  notdef
/* Encode 8 bytes in 'cp' as stream of ascii letters.
 * Provided as a possible alternative to btoe()
 */
char *
btoc(cp)
char *cp;
{
        int i;
        static char out[31];

        /* code out put by characters 6 bits each added to 0x21 (!)*/
        for(i=0;i <= 10;i++){
                /* last one is only 4 bits not 6*/
                out[i] = '!'+ extract(cp,6*i,i >= 10 ? 4:6);
        }
        out[i] = '\0';
        return(out);
}
#endif

/* Internal subroutines for word encoding/decoding */

/* Dictionary binary search */
static int
wsrch(w,low,high)
char *w;
int low, high;
{
        int i,j;

        for(;;){
                i = (low + high)/2;
                if((j = strncmp(w,Wp[i],4)) == 0)
                        return i;       /* Found it */
                if(high == low+1){

                        /* Avoid effects of integer truncation in /2 */
                        if(strncmp(w,Wp[high],4) == 0)
                                return high;
                        else
                                return -1;
                }
                if(low >= high)
                        return -1;
                   /* I don't *think* this can happen...*/
                if(j < 0)
                        high = i;  /* Search lower half */
                else
                        low = i;   /* Search upper half */
        }
}
static void
insert(s, x, start, length)
char *s;
int x;
int  start, length;
{
        unsigned char cl;
        unsigned char cc;
        unsigned char cr;
        unsigned long y;
        int shift;

        assert(length <= 11);
        assert(start >= 0);
        assert(length >= 0);
        assert(start +length <= 66);

        shift = ((8  -(( start + length) % 8))%8);
        y = (long) x << shift;
        cl = (y >> 16) & 0xff;
        cc = (y >> 8) & 0xff;
        cr = y & 0xff;
        if(shift + length > 16){
                s[start /8] |= cl;
                s[start/8 +1] |= cc;
                s[start/8 +2] |= cr;
        } else if(shift +length > 8){
                s[start/8] |= cc;
                s[start/8 + 1] |= cr;
        } else {
                s[start/8] |= cr;
        }
}

static void
standard(word)
register char *word;
{
        while(*word){
                if(!isascii(*word))
                        break;
                if(islower(*word))
                        *word = toupper(*word);
                if(*word == '1')
                        *word = 'L';
                if(*word == '0')
                        *word = 'O';
                if(*word == '5')
                        *word = 'S';
                word++;
        }
}

/* Extract 'length' bits from the char array 's'
   starting with bit 'start' */
static unsigned long
extract(s, start, length)
char *s;
int start, length;
{
        unsigned char cl;
        unsigned char cc;
        unsigned char cr;
        unsigned long x;

        assert(length <= 11);
        assert(start >= 0);
        assert(length >= 0);
        assert(start +length <= 66);

        cl = s[start/8];
        cc = s[start/8 +1];
        cr = s[start/8 +2];
        x = ((long)(cl<<8 | cc) <<8  | cr) ;
        x = x >> (24 - (length + (start %8)));
        x =( x & (0xffff >> (16-length) )   );
        return(x);
}

Appendix B - Source for 128-bit key to/from English words (convert.c)

/* convert.c  --  Wrapper to S/Key binary-to-English routines.
      Daniel L. McDonald  --  U. S. Naval Research Laboratory. */

#include <string.h>

/* eng2key() assumes words must be separated by spaces only.

   eng2key() returns

   1 if succeeded
   0 if word not in dictionary
   -1 if badly formed string
   -2 if words are okay but parity is wrong.
   (see etob() in S/Key)
*/

int eng2key(keyout,eng)
char *keyout,*eng;
{
  int rc=0,state=1;
  char *eng2;

  /* Find pointer to word 7. */

  for (eng2 = eng; rc<7 && (*(++eng2) != '\0'); )
    if (*eng2 != ' ')
      {
        rc += state;
        state = 0;
      }
    else state=1;

  if ( (rc = etob(keyout,eng)) != 1)
    return rc;

  rc = etob(keyout+8,eng2);

  return rc;
}

/* key2eng() assumes string referenced by
   engout has at least 60 characters
   (4*12 + 11 spaces + '\0') of space.

   key2eng() returns pointer to engout.

*/

char *key2eng(engout,key)
char *engout,*key;
{
  btoe(engout,key);
  strcat(engout," ");
  btoe(engout+strlen(engout),key+8);
  return engout;
}

AI ELI5

On this page
PROBLEM128-bit cryptographic keys (such as those required for SNMPv2 authentication) are difficult for humans to read, remember, and type—a long hex string like CCAC2AED591056BE4F90FD441C534766 is error-prone.
MECHANISMThe RFC proposes encoding a 128-bit key as twelve English words from a standard 2048-word dictionary, reusing techniques from the S/Key one-time password system. Each key converts to a readable sequence like RASH BUSH MILK LOOK BAD BRIM AVID GAFF BAIT ROT POD LOVE.
WHY IT MATTERSThe convention makes manual key entry more reliable and human-friendly while retaining full cryptographic strength. It is still in use in some systems today.

§1The Problem with Binary Keys

Security protocols increasingly require cryptographic keys—long strings of random bits used for authentication and encryption. SNMPv2 (Simple Network Management Protocol version 2), released around the same time as this RFC, requires 128-bit keys based on the MD5 message-digest algorithm.

A 128-bit key expressed in hexadecimal (base-16) is 32 characters long: CCAC2AED591056BE4F90FD441C534766. People cannot reliably remember, read, or type such strings. Errors are common, weakening security. The RFC asks: can we represent these keys in a more human-friendly form?

Secret codes for locking Internet services use random numbers and letters. A 128-bit code is really long and easy to mess up when typing, so scientists wanted a better way to show it.

§2Lessons from S/Key

The S/Key one-time password system, designed by Phil Karn and Neil Haller, solved a related problem: it needed to represent 64-bit values in human-friendly form.

S/Key's answer was elegant: convert the 64-bit number to six English words from a dictionary of 2048 words. Since 2048 equals 2^11, six words (each representing an 11-bit value) can encode 2^66 different numbers—more than enough for a 64-bit key with parity bits. For example, the hex value EB33F77EE73D4053 becomes TIDE ITCH SLOW REIN RULE MOT.

The dictionary uses only common English words (ranging from one to four letters each) from the invariant portion of the ISO-646 character set, ensuring interoperability across systems and languages. S/Key has an installed user base, making the choice of dictionary critical: changing it would break compatibility.

There is already a system called S/Key that turns small secret codes into words. It uses a list of 2048 simple words, so you can use six words instead of a long number.

§3Extending S/Key to 128 Bits

The RFC proposes applying S/Key's approach to 128-bit keys by treating them as two 64-bit halves. Each half is converted to six words using the S/Key primitives btoe (binary to English) and etob (English to binary). New wrapper functions, key2eng and eng2key, apply these primitives twice—once for each 64-bit half.

The result is a 128-bit key encoded as twelve English words. The example in the RFC shows the 128-bit key CCAC2AED5910 56BE4F90FD441C534766 becoming RASH BUSH MILK LOOK BAD BRIM AVID GAFF BAIT ROT POD LOVE. Conversely, a user can type the twelve words and the system translates them back to a binary key: TROD MUTE TAIL WARM CHAR KONG HAAG CITY BORE O TEAL AWL becomes EFF81F9BFBC65350920CDD7416DE8009.

Take the 128-bit secret code. Split it in half. Turn each half into six words using the S/Key method. Now you have twelve words—much easier to remember and type.

§4How It Works in Practice

For successful interoperability, the dictionary must never change. The RFC includes the full source code for both the S/Key conversion routines (in C, from S/Key's original source) and the wrapper functions that extend them to 128-bit keys.

The btoe function takes an 8-byte (64-bit) value and outputs six English words. It extracts 11-bit chunks and looks them up in the Wp array (the 2048-word dictionary). The etob function reverses the process: it takes a space-separated string of six words, searches the dictionary for each, and reconstructs the 64-bit binary value. Both functions compute and verify a parity checksum over the bits, catching certain types of entry errors.

The RFC emphasizes that implementations must use the exact dictionary provided in Appendix A. A freely redistributable reference implementation is given so vendors and open-source projects can conform.

The system looks up each word in a fixed list of 2048 words and converts it to numbers, or converts numbers back to words. It also checks that the result makes sense using a parity check, so typos are caught.

§5Security Trade-offs

The RFC acknowledges a key security concern: because words are easier to remember, users might be tempted to create easy-to-guess word sequences. In particular, people might try to devise sentences or mnemonic phrases, drastically weakening security.

For instance, instead of RASH BUSH MILK LOOK BAD BRIM AVID GAFF BAIT ROT POD LOVE (random), someone might try HAPPY WARM BLUE BIRD SING TODAY FREE HOME GOOD LOVE YOU FAST—which is much weaker because it is a plausible sentence. Such weak keys are vulnerable to dictionary attacks: an attacker can try common sentence patterns before trying truly random keys.

The RFC advises that to maximize authentication strength, the twelve words must be sufficiently obscure and random. Users should avoid the temptation to devise sentences, phrases, or predictable mnemonics. The encoding itself is cryptographically secure; the weakness lies in human key generation.

The danger is that people might try to use words that make a sentence, which is easier to guess. Keys have to be random nonsense, not clever sentences.

§6References