Obfuscation
Encyclopedia
Obfuscation is the hiding of intended
meaning
in communication
, making communication confusing, wilfully ambiguous
, and harder to interpret.
to conceal unpleasant facts from a patient; American author Michael Crichton
claimed that medical writing
is a "highly skilled, calculated attempt to confuse the reader". B. F. Skinner
, noted psychologist
, commented on medical notation as a form of multiple audience control, which allows the doctor to communicate to the pharmacist things which might be opposed by the patient if they could understand it. Similarly text-based
language, like some forms of leet
are obfuscated to make them incomprehensible to outsiders.
used by English teachers and professors when lecturing about proper writing techniques.
Literally, the phrase means "avoid being unclear" or "avoid being unclear, support being clear", but the use of relatively uncommon words causes confusion, making the phrase an example of irony
, and more precisely a heterological or hypocritical phrase (it does not embody its own advice).
The phrase has appeared in print at least as early as 1959, when it was used as a section heading in a NASA
document.
An earlier similar phrase appears in Mark Twain
's Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offenses, where he lists rule fourteen of good writing as "eschew surplusage".
The philosopher Paul Grice
used the phrase in the "Maxim of Manner", one of the Gricean maxims.
, obfuscation refers to encoding the input data before it is sent to a hash function
or other encryption scheme. This technique helps to make brute force attack
s unfeasible, as it is difficult to determine the correct cleartext.
In network security
, obfuscation refers to methods used to obscure an attack payload from inspection by network protection systems.
Intention
Intention is an agent's specific purpose in performing an action or series of actions, the end or goal that is aimed at. Outcomes that are unanticipated or unforeseen are known as unintended consequences....
meaning
Meaning (linguistics)
In linguistics, meaning is what is expressed by the writer or speaker, and what is conveyed to the reader or listener, provided that they talk about the same thing . In other words if the object and the name of the object and the concepts in their head are the same...
in communication
Communication
Communication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...
, making communication confusing, wilfully ambiguous
Ambiguity
Ambiguity of words or phrases is the ability to express more than one interpretation. It is distinct from vagueness, which is a statement about the lack of precision contained or available in the information.Context may play a role in resolving ambiguity...
, and harder to interpret.
Background
Obfuscation may be used for many purposes. Doctors have been accused of using jargonJargon
Jargon is terminology which is especially defined in relationship to a specific activity, profession, group, or event. The philosophe Condillac observed in 1782 that "Every science requires a special language because every science has its own ideas." As a rationalist member of the Enlightenment he...
to conceal unpleasant facts from a patient; American author Michael Crichton
Michael Crichton
John Michael Crichton , best known as Michael Crichton, was an American best-selling author, producer, director, and screenwriter, best known for his work in the science fiction, medical fiction, and thriller genres. His books have sold over 200 million copies worldwide, and many have been adapted...
claimed that medical writing
Medical writing
Medical writing is the activity of producing scientific documentation by a specialized writer. The medical writer typically is not one of the scientists or doctors who performed the research....
is a "highly skilled, calculated attempt to confuse the reader". B. F. Skinner
B. F. Skinner
Burrhus Frederic Skinner was an American behaviorist, author, inventor, baseball enthusiast, social philosopher and poet...
, noted psychologist
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
, commented on medical notation as a form of multiple audience control, which allows the doctor to communicate to the pharmacist things which might be opposed by the patient if they could understand it. Similarly text-based
Text-based
Usually used in reference to a computer application, a text-based application is one whose primary input and output are based on text rather than graphics or sound. This does not mean that text-based applications do not have graphics or sound, just that the graphics or sound are secondary to the...
language, like some forms of leet
Leet
Leet , also known as eleet or leetspeak, is an alternative alphabet for the English language that is used primarily on the Internet. It uses various combinations of ASCII characters to replace Latinate letters...
are obfuscated to make them incomprehensible to outsiders.
"Eschew obfuscation"
"Eschew obfuscation", also stated as "eschew obfuscation, espouse elucidation", is a humorous fumbleruleFumblerules
Fumblerules are humorous rules for writing, collected from teachers of English grammar. A fumblerule contains an example contrary to the advice it gives, such as "don't use no double negatives", "eschew obfuscation" and "never use a preposition to end a sentence with", a form of self-reference.The...
used by English teachers and professors when lecturing about proper writing techniques.
Literally, the phrase means "avoid being unclear" or "avoid being unclear, support being clear", but the use of relatively uncommon words causes confusion, making the phrase an example of irony
Irony
Irony is a rhetorical device, literary technique, or situation in which there is a sharp incongruity or discordance that goes beyond the simple and evident intention of words or actions...
, and more precisely a heterological or hypocritical phrase (it does not embody its own advice).
The phrase has appeared in print at least as early as 1959, when it was used as a section heading in a NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
document.
An earlier similar phrase appears in Mark Twain
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...
's Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offenses, where he lists rule fourteen of good writing as "eschew surplusage".
The philosopher Paul Grice
Paul Grice
Herbert Paul Grice , usually publishing under the name H. P. Grice, H...
used the phrase in the "Maxim of Manner", one of the Gricean maxims.
Cryptography
In cryptographyCryptography
Cryptography is the practice and study of techniques for secure communication in the presence of third parties...
, obfuscation refers to encoding the input data before it is sent to a hash function
Hash function
A hash function is any algorithm or subroutine that maps large data sets to smaller data sets, called keys. For example, a single integer can serve as an index to an array...
or other encryption scheme. This technique helps to make brute force attack
Brute force attack
In cryptography, a brute-force attack, or exhaustive key search, is a strategy that can, in theory, be used against any encrypted data. Such an attack might be utilized when it is not possible to take advantage of other weaknesses in an encryption system that would make the task easier...
s unfeasible, as it is difficult to determine the correct cleartext.
In network security
Network security
In the field of networking, the area of network security consists of the provisions and policies adopted by the network administrator to prevent and monitor unauthorized access, misuse, modification, or denial of the computer network and network-accessible resources...
, obfuscation refers to methods used to obscure an attack payload from inspection by network protection systems.
See also
- Fallacy of quoting out of contextFallacy of quoting out of contextThe practice of quoting out of context, sometimes referred to as "contextomy" or "quote mining", is a logical fallacy and a type of false attribution in which a passage is removed from its surrounding matter in such a way as to distort its intended meaning....
- Plain EnglishPlain EnglishPlain English is a generic term for communication styles that emphasise clarity, brevity and the avoidance of technical language – particularly in relation to official government communication, including laws.The intention is to write in a manner that is easily understood by the target...
- Politics and the English LanguagePolitics and the English Language"Politics and the English Language" is an essay by George Orwell criticizing "ugly and inaccurate" contemporary written English.Orwell said that political prose was formed "to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind." Orwell believed...
- PropagandaPropagandaPropaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
- Prolixity
- Quote mining
- Obfuscated codeObfuscated codeObfuscated code is source or machine code that has been made difficult to understand for humans. Programmers may deliberately obfuscate code to conceal its purpose or its logic to prevent tampering, deter reverse engineering, or as a puzzle or recreational challenge for someone reading the source...