- If I told you I'm a friend of Bill W.'s requesting
a visit from Dr. Brown after a violent Operation Bright Star, you'd probably think I'd
finally lost my mind. However, all the mumbo jumbo I just said is full of coded information. It's easily understandable
for those in the know. In fact, the world is full
of secret codes hidden in airplanes, jewelry, dating
profiles, and bank notes, and today I'm decoding them
for your viewing pleasure. Let's explore a whole load of secret codes you aren't meant to know. (upbeat music) Flight crew codes. During a flight, pilots are
constantly communicating with the flight attendants
and air traffic control to give them updates about the journey. These messages are
usually pretty innocent. However, if there's an emergency,
they'll use secret codes to communicate so they
don't alert the passengers. A squawk code is a four digit number that a pilot can type into
a transponder radio device in the cockpit that
will instantly relay it to air traffic control below. The different number
combinations can be used to pass information about the flight, and while different countries
use different squawk codes, there are three main emergency codes that are used all over the world. These universal numbers are
code 7600 for radio failure, code 7700 for any general emergency and code 7500 for a hijacking. Code 7500 is arguably
the most serious code as pilots will only use it if the aircraft is being forcibly
taken over by aggressors. The input design of the transponder means the pilots don't
actually say the codes out loud to send the information
to air traffic controls, so you won't hear a pilot
reporting a code 7500 over the plane's intercom. However, if you overhear
two flight attendants, say the number 7500 on your
flight, and they look worried, they're probably
discussing the possibility of being hijacked. This is pretty scary, but some of the codes used on a plane are a bit less serious. For example, if you
hear a flight attendant mention blue juice, you should know that they aren't talking about
the plane's drink options, and this is actually a code name for the chemical filled water
used in airplane toilets. As a result, if a flight attendant says there's a blue juice emergency, it means the toilet
could be malfunctioning or a passenger made a mess in there. Yeah, I think I'll stick to orange juice. Cryptic criminals. While secret aircraft codes may
warn about criminal activity taking place on board, way down on the ground, other codes are actually
used by criminals themselves. In the UK there have been several reports of artistic burglars
using chalk to mark homes with secret coded symbols. These drawings are either
marked on the house's walls or the sidewalk outside, and they're used to pass information to other criminals without
alerting the homeowner. According to police investigators, these symbols can include an
X for a good burglary target, a capital D for a house
that's too risky to rob and a flower to mark a home
that's owned by wealthy people. Some of the markings also
have more sinister meetings, like an open book that suggests that the homeowner is a vulnerable female. In 2015, the police in
Lanarkshire, Scotland warned locals that these symbols were
being used to mark homes as burglary targets and the police in Surrey,
England gave a similar warning back in 2009. While the evidence that these
symbols are used regularly today is shaky, especially
outside of Great Britain, better to be safe than sorry. So the next time you see a
kid drawing on the sidewalk with some chalk, take
him down without mercy in a citizen's arrest just
in case he's a burglar, scoping out his next target. Drifter drawings. Let's check out another group of people who have secretly communicated
through street drawings now. In the 1930s, America went
through the Great Depression, an economic crash that pushed millions
of people into poverty. During this period, there were over 2 million homeless people in the United States, and some of them embraced
a transient lifestyle deciding to drift across
America in search of work. Lots of these displaced people
traveled across the country by stowing away on freight
trains and hitchhiking, and they often left coded
symbols to communicate with other drifters
traveling on the same routes. These so-called hoboglyphs
were often drawn or carved onto train stations,
mailboxes, and street signs, and they were used to
specifically pass information that was useful to drifters. For example, two interlinked circles meant that the police in the area
didn't like homeless people, whereas a carving of a cat
on the side of a house meant that a kind lady lived there. A carved crucifix meanwhile indicated that claiming to be Christian
and talking about the Bible would get you fed at that location, while this four pronged shape inside a box warned about a vicious dog nearby. These markings allowed
drifters to stay safe, healthy, and free while traveling. And whenever they entered a
new town, they could use them to head for the house owned by the nice old cat lady. While avoiding the one owned
by the trigger happy farmer who wants people to stay off his land. Mickey's Mysteries. The next up on our code
breaking tour leads us straight to the most popular amusement park on the planet: Disney World. Disney World strives to be
the happiest place on earth, so it's important that
their guests don't know when something goes wrong. As a result, the park employees
will use coded language to communicate with each other, allowing them to share bad news in secret. For example, if you're
strolling down Main Street USA and you hear a staff member
report to code V over the radio, it means they've seen
someone throw up in the park. Kids eat a lot of candy at Disney, so this code is heard pretty frequently. Although some staff members will opt to call vomit a protein spill, instead. Similarly, if you hear a staff
member shout Code Winnie, it means they've witnessed someone peeing in one of the resort's pools. The code being named after Winnie the Pooh's bright yellow fur. Some of the other codes are much stranger. Lots of people are
obsessed with Disney World and incredibly, some of
them want their ashes to be scattered at the
park when they pass away. Disney strictly prohibits this, but reportedly families still had to Disney World on a
monthly basis to attempt to discreetly scatter the remains of their loved ones somewhere in the park. As a result, if you
overhear Snow White talking about a white powder alert, it doesn't mean somebody's having a rave in Cinderella's castle. In reality, it means they've
seen somebody spreading ashes on a ride or a traction and they need somebody
to go and clean it up. It's company policy for
all the staff members to learn these codes and
use them at all times. After all, there's nothing
less magical than a guest overhearing a discussion about vomit, pee or grandma's powdered
remains being swept up into a dust bin. Inspector Sands. Let's leave Disney World and head somewhere a bit less magical: The London Underground. The iconic Metro Tube's colorful map and strange station names can be pretty confusing for tourists. But even genuine Londoners
don't know all the secrets of the underground, and the network uses a lot of codes to share secret information
amongst the staff. For example, if you're
standing on a tube platform, you might hear a strange request
on the PA system like this: - [Announcer] Inspector
Sands, Inspector Sands, please report to control center. - The staff will ask for Inspector Sands to report to a specific
part of the station, however, they aren't talking
about a real policeman. In fact, inspector Sands
is the code word used when there's a minor fire
on the London Underground or if a civilian pulls a
fire alarm on a platform. In these situations, the staff member working in
the area needs to make the rest of the staff aware of the potential fire while they assess the situation, and the code word allows them to do so without alerting the public. They'll then determine whether
there's a real emergency and if there is, they'll set
off all the main fire alarms and the station will be evacuated. Interestingly, the London underground didn't invent this code word and it was first used in theaters
in the late 19th century. Before that, if a fire
broke out during a play, the theater staff would
just shout the word fire to the audience. However, this practice
would cause people to panic. In 1849, there was a small fire
in Glasgow's Theater Royale that was extinguished quickly. However, when the audience
heard a staff member shouting about the incident, they thought
the fire was still raging. This caused them to
stampede out of the theater resulting in a crush that
took the lives of 65 people. Several similar incidents occurred during the same time period, so theaters decided
they needed a code word that allowed them to signal a fire without panicking the audience. At the time, they would
extinguish small fires by pouring a bucket of
sand over the flames, so theaters all over the UK started using the code
word Inspector Sands. This tradition lives on
in the London Underground, the narrow corridors and stairways would present a real danger
in the event of a stampede, and although modern firefighters will usually opt for a fire extinguisher or hose over a sand bucket, if you pull a fire alarm on
a tube platform, you can bet that Inspector Sands will
still come to investigate. Fires don't break out
on the tube very often, so Inspector Sands isn't a
particularly busy policeman. However, the London
Underground has a long list of code words that are
used on a daily basis. This includes a series of
spillage codes that are used to send the janitors to a certain platform when something needs to be cleaned up. There are seven numbered codes and each one refers to
the specific substance that's been spilled. For example, code one is
blood, code three is vomit, and code five is broken glass. These codes effectively let
the janitors know in advance what equipment to bring
to the spill location, and a typical PA message would be: We have a code three on platform two. Yuck. Someone call over Mickey the janitor, we got a code five protein spill. Doctor who? Let's head into the medical industry now and check out the secret codes
that are used by doctors. Hospitals generally have a PA
system that allows the staff to send messages around the building, and occasionally they'll use code words to relay sensitive information without alarming the patients. For example, if a nurse uses the intercom to ask Dr. Brown to
come to a specific ward, they aren't really asking for a doctor. In fact, the request really means that a patient is being
violent in that area and the staff needs
security to come and help. Similarly, if there's a
request for Dr. Firestone to attend a certain ward, it means that there's a fire in that area and they need the staff to
be aware that they might have to evacuate the hospital. These intercom codes discreetly
pass emergency information through the entire hospital. However, according to
anonymous reports shared with media outlets, doctors
will also use coded language to talk about patients while standing right in front of them. Hilariously and a little worryingly, one hospital worker revealed that if a particularly ugly
child is admitted to a hospital, the doctors will describe them as an FLK, which is an abbreviation
for a funny looking kid. Less funny and more
practical though is the fact that they'll also use this abbreviation when a baby is born that visibly has an undiagnosed genetic condition. This lets the other
doctors know that they need to test the baby for some conditions without panicking the new mother. Alongside using that particular code, other doctors have confessed that they also use the abbreviation RHM to stand for a really hot mom. One doctor claimed online
that staff would refer to attractive mothers of
patients at the hospital in this way, and they'd observed
their colleagues stating that they just treated an RHM with an FLK while standing in front of the family. That kid's gonna need some
treatment for that burn. Thank God they're already
in the hospital, right? Computer error. Doctors may use a secret language to insult their patients, but it isn't the only profession
where people use code words to gossip at work. If you've ever called tech
support to help fix a problem with your computer, they often use a range of technical language that's
completely meaningless to the average person. However, you might not know that some of these complicated
words are directed at you, not the PC. See IT technicians know that
a lot of people don't know what they're talking about and they'll occasionally
use that lack of knowledge to insult you straight to your face. For example, when somebody's
computer isn't working, tech support may say that
the problem is a PEBKAC. This sounds like a
complicated computer term, however, the code is actually an acronym. It means that the problem exists
between keyboard and chair. In other words, there's
nothing wrong with the PC. The problem is being caused by a user who can't use a computer properly. Similarly, an IT technician
may say that they're dealing with an ID-10-T problem. When this is said out loud, it
sounds like technical jargon. However, when it's spelled out, the meaning becomes more clear. Now, there's no doubt that helping the
technologically illiterate is a frustrating job, but whether that gives IT guys the right to insult people, they're
supposed to be helping. I'll let you decide. But if you hear the term PEBKAC, the next time you get your computer fixed, feel free to call the
technician an ID-10-T and take your business elsewhere. Mutual friends. Let me paint a scene. I'm set at a bar enjoying a glass of water when a stranger approaches me and asks, are you a friend of Bill W.? Now, you might think that's
a terrible pickup line, or the stranger mistook
me for somebody else. However, they're really
using coded language to ask if I'm a member
of Alcoholics Anonymous. AA is a recovery program for alcoholics with a strong focus on privacy. Members of the same AA group will know each other's first names, but they're supposed
to keep them a secret, and you should never reveal the identity of another member of the program. As a result, they need
to use coded language when talking about AA in public, and if you wanna find out
whether somebody's a member, you're supposed to ask them
if they're a friend of Bill W. The name was chosen as a reference to AA's co-founder Bill Wilson, and it essentially allows
fellow members of the program to meet without forcing them to publicly reveal their
alcoholism to non-members. The code can be used in
the opposite way too. AA members have explained that if a recovering
alcoholic is at an airport and they think they're going to relapse, they can ask the gate agent
to ask if a friend of Bill W can come to their gate on the intercom. In theory, if an AA member
hears this announcement, they'll head to your gate and offer support while steering you away from the airport's bar. Wow. Bill W. has some great friends. 437737. According to my Tinder
profile, I'm a 6ft tall model who likes astrology and
long walks on the beach. However, the truth is a
bit more disappointing. People put all sorts of crazy things on their dating profiles, and it turns out some lonely
hearts use secret codes to send information to
their potential lovers. If you swipe through Tinder for a while, you might come across someone with the numbers 437737
listed in their profile. These digits seem random, however, the code actually
has a secret meaning and it signals that the person behind the dating profile has herpes. See, there's no cure for herpes, so if you contract the virus,
it will remain in your body for the rest of your life. Most of the time the dormant
virus won't be contagious. However, it can occasionally reactivate and flare up for a few weeks at a time, and for this period it can
be passed to other people. This has made a lot of people
scared of catching herpes, and the resulting stigma makes
dating pretty complicated for herpes positive people. So when dating websites were
first introduced in the 1990s, herpes infected people wanted a way to discreetly find other people with herpes without
revealing their diagnosis to everyone who saw their profile. They settled on this sequence of numbers because when you type them into an old fashioned telephone keypad, the corresponding letters
on the numbers being pressed spell out the word herpes. This code has been used on
dating sites ever since, allowing people with herpes to avoid awkward conversations
about their infection while making their diagnosis
clear to people in the know. And for those who don't already know, with Google, simply searching
the numbers will provide you the info too. A clever solution to a
pretty uncomfortable dilemma. Risque rings. When it comes to jewelry, most people wear rings and
necklaces as a simple accessory. However, some pieces
of jewelry can be used to send coded information to other people. A plain gold ring is often used to show that somebody's married. A diamond chain shows that
somebody wants to be seen as rich, all pretty obvious stuff. But did you know if
somebody wears a black ring on their right hand,
they could be suggesting that they're a swinger in an open marriage who wants to hug other
people than their spouse? These rings are sometimes
worn by non-monogamous folks who want to find other promiscuous people and let them know that they
have the same interests. Swingers will wear the ring on any finger on their right hand apart
from their middle finger. That's because wearing a black
ring on your middle finger has a completely different meaning, and it usually suggests
that you're a member of the asexual community. Being asexual means that you don't feel any
sexual attraction to anyone, so the community obviously doesn't have much in common with swingers. Of course, black rings
are also worn by people who don't belong to
either of these groups, and they may wear the jewelry without realizing its symbolic meaning. As a result, if you wear a
black ring as a fashion choice, I'd suggest wearing it on your left hand and keeping it off your middle finger. Otherwise, couples might
approach you thinking you're looking for fun, or your crush might assume
you're asexual and ignore you, a win-win or a lose-lose
depending on your preferences. Creepy cruise. Cruises are supposed to be relaxing. However, a lot can go wrong out at sea, and when there's an emergency, the staff will use coded language, so they don't worry the passengers. For example, if you're on a cruise and hear a staff member
announce Operation Bright Star over the PA system, it signals that there's a
medical emergency on board. If the staff announce an
Operation Rising Star, it means that a passenger has passed away. These scenarios aren't as
unlikely as you might think. Cruise ships carry thousands
of elderly passengers on long voyages that
largely involve overeating, learning how to salsa and
fighting over deck chairs, and as a result, around 200
passengers kick the bucket on cruise ships every year. When tragedy strikes, Operation
Rising Star is announced and it signals the staff to
retrieve the expired passenger and secretly move them to
a small morgue on board before unloading them at the next port. The cruise ships won't tell
any of the other passengers that this has happened as they don't wanna
disrupt their holidays. So as these passengers lounge in the pool and eat their dinner, they have no idea that their luxury holiday has
turned into a ghost cruise. What's the time? When I worked as a cashier as a teenager, people used to assume my job was easy. However, working at a grocery store isn't all about stacking shelves and flirting with old ladies. And cashiers in large retail
operations often have to learn a list of code words so
they can deal with problems without startling customers. When it comes to emergencies, it doesn't get much more
serious than a bomb threat, and lots of stores deal with them with the same secret code word. See, if you're shopping and
you hear the store announces time check, time check over the intercom, you should probably drop your bags and run because it's a code that's commonly used when somebody tells a store
they've planted a bomb or when a bomb has been found. This allows the staff to follow bomb threat
procedures without causing panic and evacuate the customers
without revealing the real reason for the emergency. Apparently, IKEA is one of the many stores that use this code, and if they
discover it's a false alarm, they'll perform an announcement that says, following the recent check,
all clocks have been reset. This gives the staff the all clear while allowing the customers to go back in and enjoy their meatballs. Blissfully unaware that
they were briefly at risk of blowing up. Mysterious money. Hearing an emergency code like Time Check and Inspector Sands would be
pretty scary, but bomb threats and fires are quite rare,
so there's a good chance that you'll never encounter
them in real life. However, some secret
ciphers are far more common, and you might just find these next ones hiding in your wallet. It might surprise you to hear, but in most cases, if you
try to photocopy a bank note, photocopiers will display an
error message preventing you from reproducing money, or if it does print a copy,
it'll be glitched out like this. Similar errors occur if you try to edit a bank note on Adobe Photoshop. It's pretty clever. And back in 2002, a security researcher called Marcus Kuhn tried to determine how these devices and pieces of software
know that they're dealing with genuine currency and
prevent counterfeiting. He started by examining several bank notes from different countries,
and he soon discovered that they all contained a pattern of circles arranged in
a very specific manner. He found that this pattern appears on bank notes all over the world, although some of them
incorporated in discrete ways. On the Australian $5 note, the pattern is integrated
into some flowers in the top right. Similarly, the back of the US $20 note features the number 20 all over the design and the zeros are arranged
in the distinctive shape. Marcus Kuhn named the pattern
the EURion constellation after its similarities to the astronomical Orion constellation and its appearance on the
Euro currency bank notes. When he went public with his discovery, other people started finding
the constellation everywhere although the usage of the pattern has never been officially acknowledged by any government or corporation. Technical details surrounding
the pattern are kept secret, and it isn't clear if it
even has an official name. However, the pattern definitely exists because it has been repeatedly proven that most photocopiers
automatically register it when scanning images of cash. Now, after Marcus Kuhn's discovery, people assumed that photo editing software like Photoshop's scan for
the EURion constellation too, but in 2003, a professor
called Steven James Murdoch discovered that these
apps can detect currency even when the EURion pattern is covered. Turns out apps like
Photoshop actually scan for a completely different
set of hidden codes. Bank notes are covered in
tiny, complex line patterns, which image editing software
scans like a barcode on food packaging. This alerts the software as to whether the note in the image is a genuine piece of currency. If it's an image of a real bank note, the software blocks any
modification, replication or printing, preventing
users from reproducing money and getting rich, or should
I say, reproducing money and getting their door
busted down by the FBI. - [FBI Agent] FBI, open up. - Secret sculpture. Let's move from a secret code implemented by international governments to a code that the world's best government
code breakers have tried and failed to solve. Kryptos is a sculpture in the George Bush
Center for Intelligence, the headquarters of the CIA. The CIA is the most secretive branch of America's government,
so it isn't surprising that Kryptos is a pretty cryptic statue. See, the sculpture consists
of four large copper plates that display encrypted messages
made up of jumbled letters. Three of the four plates have been solved by ingenious code breakers who were able to deduce patterns in the seemingly random jumble of letters, utilizing various deciphering methods to draw out the messages. The decrypted messages
involve GPS coordinates, references to Tutankhamun's tomb, and quotes from famous books. However, nobody has solved the final code, making it one of the most
famous unsolved puzzles on the planet. Even though the sculpture is located at the CIA's headquarters, the agency has tried
and failed to solve it, and the only people who
know Kryptos's solution are the people who designed it. The sculpture was built as a collaboration between the artist Jim Sanborn and Ed Scheidt, an ex CIA officer who served as the director
of their cryptographic center from 1963 to 1989. Sanborn designed the sculpture while Scheidt developed the
code that it would display, and they finished their
design and constructed Kryptos back in 1990. At first, the world's best cryptographers made good progress, decoding the statue, and they solved the first
three messages by 1998. However, since then, nobody's made any real progress decoding the final copper plate, and after nearly 40
years of trial and error, it looks like Kryptos may never be solved, making it the ultimate secret code. Well, with that, it's time to wrap up our code
breaking mission for today, but which secret code
shocked you the most? Let me know in the comments
below, and thanks for watching. (upbeat music)
