Claude reveals ECDSA curve origins
What happened
Claude, an Anthropic research model, uncovered that the seed values for NIST’s ECDSA curves were generated by a simple C library random number generator seeded with a Unix timestamp, not by a hash of a phrase. The model simulated the RNG, iterating thousands of times to reproduce the seeds for P-192, P-224, P-256, P-384, and P-521. This shows the curves were chosen without hidden backdoors. The discovery clarifies the origin of the parameters and confirms their security. No action is required by users.
Reality check
An automated, sceptical read of the sourceIncremental. The finding explains an existing mystery but does not change the security or usage of the curves.
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