Decryption Challenge

I need to know if my encryption for the igLoader V2 XML templates is strong enough. These templates just tell igLoader where to get application files from etc. so it's not a real issue if the stuff gets hacked, I'm just trying to put some people off.

I'd post the encrypted code here but due to the nature of the encryption you can't view the stuff in HTML.

Here is the file :- http://www.cloverleafgames.com/download/geom.xml.enc

The first one to decrypt it gets a free igLoader license, or a poke in the eye - you decide.

Ummm .... sounds really difficult.

sure I've got about a zillion years to waste, I'll just watch Internet videos while some brute force thing gets on with it ;-)

i didnt even know some of those characters existed.

Try to think of the file as a binary file and not as characters.

You should post this kind of challenge somewhere where real hackers will see it. This doesn't seem like a forum filled with the kind of people who will be trying to crack your protection.

Try codersworkshop ^_^ they seem to be full of warezers :P

Yeh, but we have "ENAY".

Is the answer sausages?

Any chance for a plaintext version (ie. what we would get if we had a debugger running, and where able to examine the memory)?

That link is to the actual encrypted file, just load it into a hex viewer.

Well the 'chalenge' is unfairly biased towards not decrypting it, as any potential reverse engineer would have access, not only to code that can decrypt it (Geom I assume) but also to at least a partial plaintext version (ripped from memory), and thus would have a much easier job, than having to guess at random what kind of encryption and key was used.

It would help if we knew if it is some kind of .ini-file
or if it contains pointers to web or local HD, like FD
points out, things a hacker would know in advance.

wedoe: It's an Xml file. That should be obvious just based on its filename: geom.xml.enc

The file does get decrypted in to memory but the result would be garbage as the XML Parser has been modified to work with obfuscated text. The password also changes on a per applicatio n basis.

A plain text varient can be found here : http://www.igloader.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=29

From the name, I deduct it's XML.

The primary methods of attack I'd suggest is:

a) A simple cipher (if any characters appear statisticly more often than others, assume they're < and > and see what you get). Does it reasonably resemble XML? If no then.

b) RC4. Indiepath has a history of championing RC4, so if you have a spare PC, try an RC4 bruteforce attack. Shouldn't take you too long. Get it to log any result with abnormally large ammounts of "<" and ">" characters.

c) Algorithm analysis. If you haven't succeded yet, your next mission will be to determine the key. This will require a computer with pattern recognition software, or a serious ammount of paper printouts.

d) Once you know how many times the key repeats itself, you'll know how many blocks you have to search through for similarities (enter your pattern recognition software again).

e) Once you have done this you should have a fairly good idea of what the algorithm does, and reverse engineering it shouldn't be much of a problem.

By the way, if you have to go much further than b) in the above list, I woud reckommen just waiting until you can get your hand on a partial (or complete) plaintext version, and/or the decryption algorithm.

Edit:
Okay, I'll take a crack at ie after dinner.

You have a good memory.

If I should want to make something crypted the VERY FIRST thing would be to rename the file to something not even remotely correct
(then put it somewhere it can blend in, like in the windows folder).

BTW: I was the first to crack a similar challenge about a year ago (here on the forums..) :oP

1337

&#1702;

You will never see this file, it will only ever exist as a stream.

Indie, if you have used RC4 to encrypt this file, presumbably using 40bit, then why not make it "commercial grade" simply by running it CBC through RC4 twice more to get 128bit encryption. That should be more than enough.

Darkheart

That's what Ethereal is for.