High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! The KL-43 is a portable, electronic cipher device used by the United States and the NATO from the early 1980s. The machine, manufactured by TRW, is an adaptation of language translator technology, and includes a keyboard for input and an LCD display for output. It also contains a built-in modem, a telephone coupler, and the facility for connecting to a printer. A version of the KL-43 was famously used by Oliver North to communicate with his assistant, Fawn Hall, and others while managing candestine operations in Nicaragua in support of the "Contra" rebels. The device was paraded in front of cameras during the Iran-Contra congressional hearings.