1. An Interview with Navy _____________________________________________
About Navy Cryptology
Q I have always been fascinated with the term cryptology. It is a term that seems to be used
more in the military than anywhere else. Why is that?
A The crypto- in cryptology stems from Greek terminology meaning hidden or concealed.
For the Navy this is important because message traffic is essential both for our operations and for
those of our enemies. Our cryptologic technicians are the Navy’s linguistics and coded
messaging specialists.
Q Would that mean that knowing a foreign language is important in this field?
A Language training is an essential element for us, so the Navy trains our cryptologic
technicians in a variety of languages ranging from Arabic, Russian, Spanish, Chinese and French
to Korean, Vietnamese, Hebrew, Persian and Tagalog. That’s the starting point for us to analyze
foreign military developments, often beginning with radio and telephone communications.
Q Does that mean that we are trying to listen in on foreign communications?
A Certainly we are, just as other countries are trying to listen in on our communications.
Q Does that mean that we need to do things to protect our own communications?
A Exactly, and that’s the other part of the challenging crypto career. Our people also are
engaged in transmitting messages in ways that cannot be intercepted and interpreted.
Q Would a Navy cryptologic technician serve as an interpreter in a foreign country?
A Actually, that probably would be a major role for a Cryptologic Technician Interpretive
(CTI), and that becomes especially important for helping to guide relief efforts during regional
disasters, gathering intelligence information from local officials, and interrogating enemy
combatants. Those same CTIs will be involved with both interpreting, analyzing and reporting
on foreign language transmissions.
Q Now that radio, telephonic and computer equipment has become so sophisticated, is any
of that employed in Navy cryptology?

2. A We’re proud to say that the Navy is at the cutting edge of this kind of technology, so yes
we do use it. In fact, we also have another class of cryptologic technicians, technical (CTT) and
they deal specifically with that kind of equipment.
Q Is that equipment used strictly for translation purposes?
A No, while translation might be a part of it, such sophisticated equipment also becomes
essential for safeguarding our own communications from interception. Successful use of this
technical equipment gives the U.S. Navy both a technological and a tactical advantage over our
adversaries.
Q You have given us an enticing taste of this military specialty. How does one get started
pursuing one of these opportunities?
A Actually, the best first step is to contact the local recruiting station to find out about any
and all of the jobs that we have available. To reach us, simply contact our station by calling
______________, or stop in most afternoons at ___________________________________. If
you or an out of-town friend want to locate another station near them, visit www.navy.com and
click on “find a recruiter” on the right side of the home page, then enter your zip code number. A
call to 800-4go –Navy will do the trick as well.
Additional comment:
To put the Navy’s role in perspective, you need to recognize that 70 percent of the world is
covered by ocean, 80 percent of the world’s population lives along coasts and 90 percent of the
world’s commerce travels by water. Protecting all of that is our job, and that makes America’s
Navy a global force for good.
Sailors serve on land and from the sea; from ships on the water, submarines under the water, and
planes and helicopters over the water – all to meet America’s threats far away so that those
threats cannot harm us here. We welcome the best men and women to join us in accomplishing
today’s missions and meeting tomorrow’s challenges.
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