Malbolge: A programming language from “hell” that can actually be used for encryption?
What is Malbolge? Do you really want to know?
If programming languages have a “ceiling of complexity”, then Malbolge is definitely the champion.
This language has never had a truly functional program written by its creator, Ben Olmstead!
Yes, you heard it right—the creator himself cannot use it! Isn’t that absurd?
So how “twisted” is it?
In simple terms:
It features self-modifying code, where the code changes as you write it, completely out of control!
Its execution path is as chaotic as a “drunken man”; no one can predict what will happen next!
It uses ternary operations; normal people find decimal cumbersome, and now we have to deal with ternary? That’s a definite deterrent.
One could say that the original intention of Malbolge’s design is to “make people question their existence”.
So some joke: “Once you learn Malbolge, you won’t need to code all night because you simply can’t write anything.“
Such an absurd language can actually be used for encryption? Is that true?
Believe it or not, there is some truth to it.
Think about it, the biggest feature of Malbolge is that it is unintelligible.
In the field of encryption, this unpredictable and non-reversible characteristic actually becomes its advantage.
For example.
When you are making a payment on your phone, a hacker tries to crack your payment password.
With ordinary encryption algorithms, hackers can eventually crack it using either skill or brute force.
But what if your encryption program is written in Malbolge?
Not only would they struggle to crack it, but they might not even understand what the program is doing, instantly questioning their existence.
Thus, the uniqueness of Malbolge in the encryption field mainly manifests in:
Dynamic changes: The code self-modifies, and the key generation rules change at any time, like battling a “master of disguise”—it’s tough!
Unpredictability: The execution logic is completely random, leaving hackers with no way to start.
Resistance to quantum attacks: Future quantum computers could destroy many traditional encryption algorithms, but the complexity of Malbolge might leave quantum computers perplexed.
Doesn’t that sound quite “high-end”?
But don’t get too emotional; there is another side to this.
Is it really useful, or is it just a “gimmick greater than reality”?
At this point, we need to remain calm.
Although Malbolge is quite a “genius”, it has its share of problems:
Extremely low efficiency: Writing code in it is truly torturous, and even if you manage to write something, the execution speed is painfully slow.
Maintenance is nearly impossible: If there is a bug in the code, don’t expect to find it; the program might even forget how it runs.
Lack of popularity: The number of programmers worldwide who can use Malbolge is probably less than the number of treadmills in gyms.
Some even joke: “The encryption program you wrote in Malbolge won’t need a hacker to crack it; you won’t be able to open it yourself.“
However, these issues do not prevent it from being a theoretical exploration tool.
After all, truly innovative things often first appear as “laughable” before they become “sought after”.
So why should we study it?
Ultimately, Malbolge serves as a reminder:
In the world of cybersecurity, the strongest weapon is often not the defense itself, but rather “making the enemy not understand what you are doing”.
See, traditional encryption algorithms emphasize rules and logic, and what happens? Hackers learn these rules and can gradually crack them.
But a language like Malbolge, which operates against convention, breaks the logical rules and uses chaos to combat order, resulting in better effectiveness.
Just like the famous quote from The Three-Body Problem: “Weakness and ignorance have never been obstacles to survival; arrogance is.“
When hackers attack with their “self-evident” logic, Malbolge suddenly appears and shatters their logic.
Isn’t that quite clever?
Finally, let’s talk about whether you would believe that hope can grow in “hell”?
To be honest, Malbolge is a very interesting tool, but its future may not lie in practical applications, but rather in the ideas behind it:
Solving unconventional problems in unconventional ways.
As cybersecurity becomes increasingly complex, we must break out of conventional thinking frameworks to seek new possibilities.
Perhaps Malbolge itself is not perfect, but it offers us a “non-mainstream” inspiration—the strongest encryption methods of the future may be those technologies that are “incomprehensible”.
So the question arises:
If one day you find that “chaos” is the greatest sense of security, would you be more willing to believe in it?
Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments!
—END—
That’s all for today. After reading, remember to click “like” in the lower right corner!
Your support is my greatest motivation for creation.
Click the card above👆【Yao Yao’s Notes】to follow.