Passwords from the Federation

If you are a regular reader of this fine tech blog or perhaps if you are a co-worker, a friend, an acquaintance or simply someone who runs into me regularly then your surely know I am a Trekkie. This love of all things Star Trek of course resulted in the use of countless Star Trek related passwords. Recently I made an effort to change all my passwords, as I have often recommended right here. One of my efforts is to not use Star Trek related passwords any longer. That being said there are many great ones out there and here are a couple very cool Star Trek passwords.

NCC-1701

Yes this is the most basic of Trek passwords. I have used this one fore more accounts then I want to admit. NCC-1701 is, of course, the registry number of the Constitution Class USS Enterprise.   

NCC-74656

Many non-Star Trek fans know “NCC-1701". Accepting this let's jump ahead a few years – and a few successful series – and use the registry of Voyager as a solid ship-based password.

11001001

TNG's first season introduced the Bynars.  These weird Boolean-based li'l aliens strive at completing dangerous computer upgrades. 11001001 was the name of a file they stored within the Enterprise's computer to aid them in transferring massive amounts of data. It was also the name of the episode and, if someone isn't a Trek fan, it makes a pretty good password out of only two numbers.

SC937-0176CEC

In the episode “Court Martial,” Captain James T. Kirk reads into the record his long string of commendations. In addition to these accolades, we learn his serial number as well.

S179-276SP

Earlier in the very same episode, we learn some great details about Mr. Spock. In addition we also discover his serial number (not quite as long, so perhaps not as secure).

6565827D

When find another great password from watching "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home". If you ever get caught red handed gathering photons from a nuclear wessel, this code is all you have to give the interrogating officer. When Pavel Chekov wasn't able to beam away from the USS Enterprise in time (no, not THAT Enterprise, a different Enterprise) he figured honesty was the best policy. He gave his name rank and service number – baffling everyone with talk of the United Federation of Planets.

11A11A2B1B2B3000Destruct0

What we have here is the four-part spoken codes for the auto-destruct sequence of the Enterprise. As first divulged in TOS's season three episode “Let That Be Your Last Battlefield,” the first part is given by the Captain, the second section from the second in command, and the third part by third in command. Then, the last bit is given by the Captain to kick off the 30-second countdown.

Qql3Qkl1

When Kirk and Spock beamed down to the mental asylum on Elba II in the episode "Whom Gods Destroy" for some reason they decided to create a secret code to communicate back with the Enterprise. It was almost as if they knew that Garth of Izar  would be there and that he would have mastered the Antosian art of cellular manipulation.

Scotty's first part of the code is “Queen to Queen's Level Three,” a move in Tri-D chess. The proper response is “Queen to King's Level One.”

173467321476C32789777643T732V73117888732476789764376Lock

You can't keep a Vulcan from the koon-ut-kal-if-fee during pon farr, and you can't keep a Soong-type android away from the call of its creator. The episode “Brothers” shows Data taking control of the ship and using Picard's voice to lock-out others from the computer. The above code, the most hardcore of alphanumeric codes in the history of television, would take 8.467×1080 combinations to break. This one should therefore be reserved for only the most important security measures.

CX-937-

Nog was the first Ferengi in Starfleet, so this means he was the first Ferengi to memorize a number that didn't have to do with maximizing profit. In the episode “Rocks and Shoals” he begins blurting out his serial number but, by the time he gets to the second dash, he's told to shut up by none other than Elim Garak! As such, we never hear the end of his code. Therefore, it is up to YOU to finish it, hence making it the most unbreakable password ever.

Ok that's a lot of very cool Star Trek passwords. I have used a couple of them myself in the past but you will never get me to tell you which ones.

Original article and much of the content for this article originated at www.startrek.com.