| name | ctf-category |
| description | CTF challenge router - fingerprint a challenge (file type / prompt / artifacts) into its category (pwn, rev, crypto, forensics, stego, web, osint, hash) and route to the matching wiki page, tools, and first moves. Wiki-first. |
CTF Category Router
Given a challenge file or description, identify the category, then read the matching wiki page and apply its methodology. Always file the artifact and read the prompt before choosing.
Fingerprint -> route
| Signal | Category | Wiki page | First moves / tools |
|---|
| ELF/PE binary + "get a shell" / nc to a port | pwn | [[binary-exploitation]] | checksec; find offset (cyclic); [[pwntools]] template; leak libc |
| Binary + "find the flag" / crackme / no network | rev | [[reverse-engineering]] | file,strings,checksec; [[radare2]]/Ghidra; ltrace; angr |
n,e,c / .pem / cipher / "encrypt" / base-looking blob | crypto | [[cryptography-attacks]], [[crypto-ctf-workflow]] | identify primitive; RsaCtfTool; padding/XOR/hash-ext; CyberChef |
| .sol file / ABI+bytecode / contract address / web3 RPC endpoint | blockchain | [[smart-contract-web3-attacks]], [[defi-amm-exploitation]] | [[slither]] static analysis; Foundry/Hardhat local fork to reproduce; flash-loan/AMM economic-exploit sims for DeFi |
| .pcap / .raw memory / disk image / .E01 | forensics | [[digital-forensics]] | file,binwalk; [[volatility]] (mem); [[tshark]]/Wireshark (pcap) |
| Innocuous image/audio / "look closer" | stego | [[steganography]] | exiftool,binwalk,strings; zsteg/steghide/stegseek; spectrogram |
| URL / web app | web | existing hunt skills | auto-triggers (sqli/xss/ssrf/idor/injection...) via triggers.json |
$hash / NTLM / shadow / zip2john | hash/crack | [[hash-capture-and-cracking]] | identify (hashid); [[hashcat]] mode; [[password-cracking]] |
| "find the account/person/leak" / no file | osint | [[secret-hunting]], [[web-attack-surface]] | search pivots; [[git-exposure]] for repos |
python >>> jail / restricted shell / filtered interpreter | misc/jail | [[ctf-jail-escapes]] | builtins/mro recovery, format-string pyjail, GTFOBins rbash escape |
Procedure
file challenge.*; read the prompt; note the remote (nc host port) if any.- Match the strongest signal above (multiple may apply -> start with the most specific).
qmd_query "<category> <specific tech>" -> read the wiki page; apply its methodology + payloads.- Re-fingerprint every extracted artifact (stego/forensics nest: image -> zip -> binary).
- Flag found -> note the technique. Novel trick -> Wiki Feedback: update the category page so it is captured.
Self-heal
If a category page is missing or thin for the technique used, add a ## <technique> section (or stub the page) before moving on, so the gap fills. Pages: crypto/[[cryptography-attacks]], rev/[[reverse-engineering]], forensics/[[digital-forensics]], stego/[[steganography]], pwn/[[binary-exploitation]] + heap/[[heap-exploitation]], misc-jail/[[ctf-jail-escapes]].
Report: category chosen + flag/blocker + any wiki update.
