Exploring OverTheWire: Level 9 to Level 10 - Bandit Challenge

Introduction

As we continue our progress in the Bandit Challenge, Level 10 ↗️ presents us with a new challenge. Our objective is to find a password hidden within the “data.txt” file, where the password is encoded as a human-readable string preceded by several ’=’ characters.

Challenge Overview

By using commands like grep, strings, and tr we’ll search for the strings, manipulate the output, and successfully obtain the password.

Approach and Strategy

Follow these steps to successfully solve Level 10:

ssh [email protected] -p 2220

Enter the password you obtained from the previous level.

To search for the password within the “data.txt” file, where it is preceded by several ’=’ characters, use the following command:

strings data.txt | grep "=="

The strings command extracts human-readable strings from the file, and the grep "==" command filters out strings containing ’==‘.

The output of the command will display the lines containing the relevant strings. Examine the output to identify the line that contains the password. The output will be something like this

4========== the#
========== password
========== is
========== G7w8LIi6J3kTb8A7j9LgrywtEUlyyp6s

Take note of the password for the next level.

Notes

• The grep command is useful for searching for specific patterns within files.
• Use the strings ↗️ command to extract human-readable strings from binary files.
• Observe the output and identify the relevant strings based on the given criteria.

Conclusion

Congratulations on successfully completing Level 10 of the Bandit Challenge! By searching for the password within the “data.txt” file, encoded as a human-readable string preceded by several ’=’ characters, we have obtained the necessary password to progress further.

Stay tuned for the next blog post, where we’ll tackle Level 11 and face new challenges in our quest to become proficient cybersecurity practitioners.