| Title: | -={ H A C K E R S }=- | 
| Notice: | Write locked - see NOTED::HACKERS | 
| Moderator: | DIEHRD::MORRIS | 
| Created: | Thu Feb 20 1986 | 
| Last Modified: | Mon Aug 03 1992 | 
| Last Successful Update: | Fri Jun 06 1997 | 
| Number of topics: | 680 | 
| Total number of notes: | 5456 | 
	There has been quite a discussion about this in vmsnotes but most
    of it centering around WHY and not an answer... someone suggested
    posting it here ,so here goes...
    
              <<< VAXWRK::WRKD$:[NOTES$LIBRARY]VMSNOTES.NOTE;1 >>>
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Note 936.0                  is this file an image?                    21 replies
USHS01::MALLORY "Cluster Killer"                     20 lines   4-JUN-1986 19:43
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    What is the correct way to find out if a file is an image?
    
    I have a customer in a hostile environment who has users that hide
    images in files like x.txt.  
    
    My approach is to:
    
    1) see if the file has a 512 byte record if so if not next file
    
    2) open the file
    	read block 1 as if it were an IHD
    	check ihd$w_imgidoff to see if it is gt 5 and lt 500
    		(got these values from IMAGEINFO tool on toolshed)
    
    don't have a fiche reader handy, someone with source code on-line
    handy look at ana/image and send me a code segment mabey?
    
    adv<thanks>ance
    
    
| T.R | Title | User | Personal Name | Date | Lines | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 252.1 | Your test will get you passed round one... | TLE::BRETT | Fri Jun 06 1986 22:07 | 16 | |
|     
    If the environment is that hostile, and all he does is look for 512
    byte fixed length files, he has a shock coming.
    
    All the people have to do is modify the record attributes from FIX
    to VAR and your program won't find the hidden .exe's; furthermore
    a trivial "encryption" (eg: xor'ing with a fixed key) will conceal
    any other attributes of a file header.             
    
    A better approach would be to raise a flag about any file whose
    contents aren't obviously text.
    
    An even better question is "why" - but if that's being addressed
    in VMSNOTES...
    
    /Bevin
 | |||||
| 252.2 | There's a command to do it. | DELNI::CANTOR | Dave Cantor | Sat Jun 07 1986 00:48 | 4 | 
|       How about a simple ANAL/IMAGE filename.typ and check the $STATUS
      for success?
      
      Dave C.
 | |||||
| 252.3 | takes too long | USHS01::MALLORY | Cluster Killer | Sat Jun 07 1986 08:55 | 5 | 
|     RE .2 this too was discussed in vmsnotes... there are 48 ra81's
    worth of data to look on (on a *regular* basis) ana/image would
    take weeks!
    
    
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