“Cicada 3301” this name was given to an organization/cult who posted a series of puzzles to be solved in order to recruit codebreakers from all over. No one knew who set the puzzle or what the prize at the end was, but the suspense surely made the public go crazy. The puzzles were also called “the most elaborate and mysterious puzzle of the internet age” and further listed as one of the “top 5 eeriest, unsolved mysteries of the internet”. Many people had different theories like the puzzles were some methods used by the CIA, NASA, or some major conspiracy groups.
The notorious thread first began on January 4th, 2012, and was in play for around a month. The second round began exactly after one year and the third round was posted on January 2, 2015. The first few puzzles were solvable, they could be solved with a little smartness and wordplay. But as the puzzles went ahead, the difficulty level increased and the references became a little less obvious.
WHAT WAS THE PURPOSE?
The purpose of the thread was to recruit intelligent individuals and codebreakers. No company or organization has taken any credit for the same, yet. The cult members were basically looking for people with cryptography and computer skills.
The cicada puzzle clues went viral, all over social media. Apparently, all the clues referenced to some old books, art, and music. There are so many angles to the puzzles. Instead of dying down, the group of people trying to solve has been growing ever since. Eight years and the legacy is still continuous. the cicada has become a story of passion, obsession, and paranoia.
