What Happened to the Numbers Stations? - Spying by Numbers

If you've ever listened to a shortwave radio you may have heard the strange creepy numbers stations just calling out numbers in synthesized voices with little tunes introducing and ending them. What is their purpose? and why are they still being used 70+ years after began to be heard? Are they calling out to spies and embedded agents around there world or are they just a relic of the cold war, in this video we look at the mysterious numbers stations.

Written, Researched and Presented by Paul Shillito

Make your own One Time Pad with the encryption/decryption instructions from the CIA here :

A big thank you also goes to all our Patreons :-)

Alan Johns
Allan Versaevel
Alok G Singh
Andrew SMITH
Bobby Up
Brandon Acosta
Brian Kelly
Cody Belichesky
Collin Copfer
Damien Pasche
Daniele Noacco
David Stevens
Donovan Campbell
Giacomo Catenazzi
Henri Saussure
Johan Rombaut
john edwards
Jonathan Merage
Jonathan Travers
Juerg Hurni
Kai Spuhler
Keld Lundgaard
Kevin Hinnen
Lorne Diebel
Lászlà Antal
Mark Koontz
Matthew MacKenzie
P.S.
Peter Barber
Prashanth Ruthala
Pyloric
SHAMIR
Sk1er
stefan hufenbach
Steve J - LakeCountySpacePort
Thomas Branch
Vincent
Walt Dennig

Music from the Youtube library
Marianas by Quincas Moreira
Sunrise Over Big Data Country by Dan Bodan

[AtheistOrphan]

‘You may have come across some weird broadcasts with no normal talking’ - Yes, that’s called ‘BBC Radio 1’

[johnfranks]

Spy communication activity or non-activity is obfuscated by keeping an unused station on air and on schedule. Deploying a station only as needed could be a clue to your adversaries.

[stevangucu]

Imagine if a 80 year old sleeper agent who was just watching your video for fun got the message from the beginning to start protocol on the 50 year old mission.

[ribbitgoesthedoglastnamehe]

Transmissions coming from Bletchley Park and Guam: certainly we cannot know if UK or USA are involved, it could be anyone!

[johnladuke]

They're probably still around because your agent might be in a situation where they have no access to modern information technologies. You might get zero bars in the deepest jungle, but your short-wave radio will still get your orders from the numbers station. Or, a radio might raise a lot less questions than a sophisticated computer setup for an agent in a low-tech rural setting.

[kelleydupuis]

About four minutes into this video, you see a guy named Kendall Myers, convicted in 2009 of spying for Cuba. I knew him. In 1986 I had just gone to work for the U.S. State Department, and before my departure for Germany that spring, I took a class at the Foreign Service Institute called Western European Area Studies. Kendall Myers was our instructor. He worked for the State Department.

[David-xoci]

THE NUMBERS MASON, WHAT DO THEY MEAN!?!?

[thevellocet]

I've had an obsession over these for many years and they still sound so creepy to hear. Swedish rhapsody is up there with the nightmare fodder.

[KRAFTWERKK]

Few years ago i arranged/compiled some of these CONET recordings to a soundscape piece because the whole topic of the Number Stations has such an eerie tone to it and in one way becomes really musical and the shortwave medium makes it feel like it's an organic creature trying to communicate.

[Alexander_Sannikov]

in early 90's i was a radioelectronics enthusiast in Russia and it was pretty simple to receive very similar signals on a homemade radio. some of them were broadcasting in Morse code beeps that i havent deciphered. it did sound very mysterious and creepy, still don't know what they were for.

[Harvester_OS]

“It’s 11:59 on Radio Free America; this is Uncle Sam, with music, and the truth until dawn. Right now I’ve got a few words for some of our brothers and sisters in the occupied zone: “the chair is against the wall, the chair is against the wall”, “john has a long mustache, john has a long mustache”. It’s twelve o’clock, American, another day closer to victory. And for all of you out there, on, or behind the line, this is your song.”

[Stormgebieder]

When things go bad, the old tech may surpass the new one.

[masaharumorimoto]

Perfect!!! Number Stations are my FAVORITE part of spy shit, I love how it's all real, it's all clandestine, and it all had real impacts on real people in the real world. No bullshit arg's or creepypasta here, just really creepy reality.

[dominicrusho]

I managed to decode one of the messages: “ A M A N H A S F A L L E N I N T O T H E R I V E R I N L E G O C I T Y”

[thelanavishnuorchestra]

I remember listening to them when I was a kid with a shortwave radio, collecting QSL cards.

[gaveintothedarkness]

7:08 Damn, thought that was going to be a slick Nord VPN advertisement.

[Speechiegirl]

This is one of my favorite topics. I love listening to number stations .

[ellemjay]

I found one of these stations when I was a kid playing with someone's shortwave radio. It sounded terrifying to an eight year old!

[graycloud]

When I was a boy, ( early 1970’s) I listened to these stations on my grand dad’s shortwave radio. These transmissions sounded so strange and erie. Thanks awfully old chap!

[anonlastbend]

At first the shirt lacking color was concerning, but soon you realize the pattern is so intense you think its moving. A subtle start that only builds in energy. Very well done. Also, the number stations are always an interesting topic.