t2’15 Challenge to be released 2015-09-19 10:00 EEST

Last year’s crowdsourcing effort was a definite success and that inspired us to go for a crowdsourced cryptanalysis mission.

Background

After last year’s t2 we spent the cold winter months browsing through online auctions for historical data processing equipment. Just like LinkedIn profiles revealing sensitive projects and inside information, old devices and mass storage units can be a treasure trove for the lucky.

The mystery box we received in the mail is suspected to be a part of secure communication infrastructure between nation states. After hard work and tedious efforts, we managed to extract an executable from the device for analysis.

Details

The first person to recover all content will win a free ticket to t2’15 conference. In addition to this, the creators of the Challenge will select another winner among the next ten correct answers. The criteria for the other selection is the elegance of the answer. In short, you can win with both speed and style.

The Challenge will be released on 2015-09-19 10:00 EEST right here at t2.fi

t2’14 Challenge winners

Ludvig Strigeus (Investigator1) from Sweden was the second one to solve the t2’14 Challenge but the first one to claim the prize. Well done Ludde! Congratulations!

This time it proved pretty difficult to pick the second winner as the submissions were of very high quality. After careful consideration we chose Vladimir Gneushev from Russia. His write-up will be published after the conference so you’ll have a change to evaluate his submission yourself.

Congratulations to both winners! We would also like to thank each one of you who participated – especially those who made it to top 20 – you guys rock! Last but not least. if you have an interesting idea for t2’15 Challenge, please let us know – authors get a free admission to the conference among other perks 😉

Speaking of talent. Our friends at McAfee would like to chime in.

t2 is all about networking and meeting with the right people. We at McAfee, the world’s largest dedicated security company, are looking for new talent to join us in our quest to keep the connected world safe – time to talk? Ask us more @ t2 or check out our open positions!

t2’14 Challenge write-up submission deadline is 2014-09-28 10:00 EEST

This is just a short note to let you know that the deadline for t2’14 Challenge write-up submissions is 2014-09-28 10:00 EEST, after which the creators of the Challenge will select the winner.

Please remember that the criteria for the selection is the elegance of the answer. The solution must include a detailed description of methods and tools used. If you don’t know the definition of elegance – please check out the winning write-ups from previous years.

t2’14 Challenge hint: Easter egg

We now accept few different hashes for one of the easter eggs. If you think you did find an egg but the hash got rejected, please try again – it might actually work now 🙂

Hat tip to Peter Kosinar for pointing this out.

t2’14 Challenge winner does not want to claim his prize

Peter Kosinar from Slovakia was the first one to solve the t2’14 Challenge. The speed that he pulled off the Challenge was absolutely amazing. One could easily think that Mr. Kosinar has solved some other challenges in the past 🙂

But wait, that’s not all. He does not want to claim his prize, so we have agreed that we will post his name to the hall of fame (which he definitely deserves) but the game is still on. Two tickets on the table – go for it!