Part 12/17:
Furthermore, the Germans’ reliance on strict procedures and their culture of secrecy—a ritualistic reverence for Enigma—created a psychological barrier to questioning its security. Small operator mistakes—reusing message keys, sending predictable test messages, or falling into habits—became exploitable patterns.
The Tragic Hubris and Its Cost
German overconfidence persisted until late in the war, even as decrypted intelligence helped the Allies anticipate and counter their operations. The failure to recognize their vulnerability was rooted in a cognitive trap—mistaking complexity for invulnerability and failure to question their assumptions.