Cicada 3301 started on January 4, 2012 and has been described as "the most baffling and enigmatic mystery on the Internet" and was listed as one of the "top 5 eeriest, unsolved mysteries of the internet" by Washington Post. The name Cicada 3301 is the nickname given to the person or persons that posted the sets of puzzles that led people that wanted to solve them all across the surface web, to the dark web, and even to QR codes posted in real life locations. The puzzles focused heavily on data security, cryptography, steganography, and internet anonymity. Some believe Cicada 3301 is an alternate reality game, even though no company or individual has attempted to monetize it. Some of the final contestants believe that Cicada 3301 is a remnant of the late 80s and 90s Cypherpunk movement. People are still working on solving the Cicada 3301 Liber Primus ("First Book" in Latin), a book of encrypted runes.
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