Secret Message in Morse Code
Write it, send the link, let them work it out.
Type a message, press the button, and you get a link. Whoever opens it sees the Morse code, can play it, and has to decode it before the answer appears. The message rides inside the link itself - nothing is stored here and nothing reaches a server.
Where the message actually lives
Look at the link after you create one. Everything after the hash sign is your message, encoded so that spaces and accents do not break the address.
That position is deliberate. A web browser sends the path of an address to the server, but it never sends the part after the hash. That fragment stays on the device. So the message does not appear in this site's server logs, and it does not appear in the logs of anything else the link passes through on the web.
This is concealment, not encryption. Anyone holding the link can read the message, and links travel through messaging apps and mail servers where they can be stored. It hides a message from a passing glance over a shoulder. It does not protect anything that actually needs protecting.
What it is good for
- A treasure hunt. Each link holds the clue to the next place. Children get through them faster than most adults expect, particularly with the chart printed out.
- A classroom exercise. Send the same message to a group and see who decodes it first, or give each pupil a different word to send onward.
- A card or invitation. The link goes on the card, the message unfolds when they open it.
- Practice. Ask a friend to send you one every day. Decoding something you have not seen before is entirely different from reading your own text back.
Making it solvable
The recipient needs a way in, especially if they have never seen Morse code:
- Keep it short. One word is a puzzle, a sentence is a chore. The first message someone decodes by hand should be under ten letters.
- Avoid numbers at first. Digits are five signals each and look like a wall to a beginner.
- Point them at the alphabet. The puzzle page links to it, but saying so in your own message helps.
- Let them hear it. The play button is on the puzzle page. Some people find the rhythm easier than the written dots.
Frequently asked questions
-
Is the message stored anywhere?
No. It sits in the fragment of the link, the part after the hash, which browsers never send to a server. There is no database here and nothing to delete.
-
Is it encrypted?
No, and it should not be treated as if it were. The message is encoded so it does not break the address, but anyone with the link can read it. Use it for games and surprises, not for anything confidential.
-
How long can the message be?
Long enough for a few sentences before the link becomes unwieldy. For a puzzle, though, short is better: a single word is usually the right size.
-
Can the recipient reply?
Not through the link itself, but the puzzle page has a button to write their own, which gives them a new link to send back.