The National Security Agency's (NSA) Center for Cryptologic History is pleased to announce the induction of five major cryptologic figures into the Cryptologic Hall of Honor.
The 2024 inductees are:
- Francis N. Allen - NSA’s analytic achievements against the Soviet target in the 1980s would not have been possible without the development work performed by Frank Allen. Allen provided key knowledge not only to analysis and reporting, but to development of sophisticated collection and processing systems. He created the series of Soviet Telecommunications Handbooks, guidebooks of the parameters of the wide variety of Soviet systems that were used worldwide by collectors and analysts alike.
- Joanne B. Perriens - Perriens was a groundbreaking analyst, leader, and glass-ceiling-shattering pioneer. She began her career at Arlington Hall, then moved with NSA to Fort Meade in the mid-1950s. From her earliest assignments she worked Soviet and Eastern Bloc targets, and did so for decades in myriad positions. Perriens was a strong advocate for personnel and their career development, and aggressively supported the promotion of women into the Agency’s higher ranks. She sent official memos to three successive DIRNSAs, challenging them to increase the number of women in senior positions. Mrs. Perriens’ actions resulted in great strides forward in diversity issues.
- James R. Child - The accomplishments of James Child, a Senior Language Research Analyst at the National Cryptologic School, have arguably affected every single government linguist since the 1970s. Child’s lasting contribution to NSA—already recognized by government and academia—was the revolution he launched in language instruction and testing, as well as the specific tools to maintain proficiency standards.
- Patrick R. Gallagher, Jr. - Gallagher, an electrical engineer, laid the foundations for what are now the Cybersecurity Directorate and the Laboratory for Advanced Cybersecurity Research. Additionally, he established NSA’s relationship with the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST), which is as critical today as it was in his time. Gallagher guided both the Trusted Product Evaluation Program (TPEP) and the Commercial COMSEC Endorsement Program (CCEP). These programs were the foundation of cryptographic evaluation for decades, and the underlying security principles established within them are applied to this day.
- Theodore Eric Nave, CAPT, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Navy, OBE - CAPT Nave contributed significantly to the safety and security of Allied countries throughout a career spanning the period 1917 to 1949. His foundational work unravelling Japanese Naval telegraphy and breaking Imperial Japanese Naval codes was instrumental in supporting Allied operational forces in the South West Pacific Area, led by General Douglas MacArthur. Throughout a career in both the Australian and British navies, Nave played a foundational role in training Allied analysts, which was just as critical to allied codebreaking success as his individual achievements. A passionate advocate for an Australian peacetime SIGINT capability, Nave was closely involved in establishing the Defense Signals Bureau at the end of World War II (now the Australian Signals Directorate). In 1946, he led the delegation that ensured Australia’s inclusion in the Five Eyes signals intelligence arrangements, which continue to this day.
The next call for nominations will be issued in early 2025, but any individual or group can make a nomination at any time.
Individuals or groups nominated for the Cryptologic Hall of Honor must have made a significant contribution through cryptology to America's national security. This may have been through a single event or a lifetime of superior achievements in cryptology. Individuals who worked for the government must have departed government cryptologic service at least 10 years prior to the nomination. Non-U.S. individuals or groups are also eligible for consideration, and their achievements, too, must have occurred at least 10 years prior to the nomination.