Windows – Text in web page becomes encrypted when copied and pasted

copy/pasteencryptionwebpagewindows 7

When I try to copy and paste the text in the following web page to Notepad, the text becomes encrypted.

http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/yazarlar/17887201.asp?yazarid=249

  1. How does this happen? What is the trick behind that?
  2. Can this encryption be overwhelmed? If yes, how?

More Info:

I tried to paste in Notepad++, MS Word 2007, and in Firefox (in this very question box); got the following text (the same snippet @Matt Jenkins referred to in his answer):

Tuntnzkuecelhl3ak9i’djtbs2oe 4t2havd
kicctd8slol4a3b6suk,iuwjcd
Birbzow4ngönzy12al’dvgbvm4e 80ak5v8
ki0vgi2ulol2yajv4uk nd56f6basnskrbdma
3nwdb1düz3ojhteenel3452aklict9uzn
ma8rostuyın06g53u
bua86al4lunpnlbnwdu.33kig4
Şı4ol281rnaamhetrk’tct8mr6a
aljkeposkei3wtderi
4eaw3ebirdbj3e5likgh2jj2
gebd3nfuçerorbo1fkenozaw8k, T320odzNT
3wa1eave 25at8lgüb63k8cureye5grtwle
d4vernhaz3r1tt6ırlkhl2vyanıer8seup
ymj3c61ol 3mocutkenvantlharı5zrugwna
ps6y1rtuz4rkkooaklmtof93anaatvuuvn
2bvs0u20 kyf5v1filo586tb6luk98ndfu
mavadwhayınvswyoj pa5wglpztlabiwcm3dı.

Best Answer

Your browser copies what it sees in the page – which is not always the same as what you see.

For example, this paragraph in your page:

Tunceli’de 4 kiloluk, Bingöl’de 8 kiloluk basma düzenekli mayın bulundu.

is displayed from this HTML source:

<P><EM>Tun<span class="yfji">tnzkue</span>cel<span class="eikn">hl3ak9</span>i’d<span class="bcb6">jtbs2o</span>e 4<span class="zgd9">t2havd</span> ki<span class="y3nt">cctd8s</span>lol<span class="eoaa">4a3b6s</span>uk,<span class="m5z5">iuwjcd</span> Bi<span class="ckun">rbzow4</span>ngö<span class="t8jr">nzy12a</span>l’d<span class="v1vy">vgbvm4</span>e 8<span class="h3v5">0ak5v8</span> ki<span class="szmy">0vgi2u</span>lol<span class="p00o">2yajv4</span>uk <span class="my4v">nd56f6</span>bas<span class="b5sl">nskrbd</span>ma <span class="j3y5">3nwdb1</span>düz<span class="l53b">3ojhte</span>ene<span class="e8a8">l3452a</span>kli<span class="yby5">ct9uzn</span> ma<span class="kjf5">8rostu</span>yın<span class="f1jt">06g53u</span> bu<span class="p2b1">a86al4</span>lun<span class="fkzc">pnlbnw</span>du.

As you can see, the text is full of tags like <span class="yfji">tnzkue</span>. You don't see them in the page because these classes are declared as invisible through CSS. (I think it's supposed to protect against either content stealers or search engines.)

Some browsers (Firefox, Opera and Chrome) are smart enough to ignore the hidden text, while others, such as Internet Explorer copies everything.

To answer your other question: Upgrade your browser.

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