Labs / ZIP Cracker
- Daily Challenge
- Released 18 Aug 2025
🔐 Can you crack this password-protected archive?
A mysterious password-protected archive has fallen into your hands, containing secrets that someone desperately wanted to hide. 🔐 Armed with your cybersecurity knowledge and determination, you'll need to crack through the encryption barrier to reveal what lies within. Will you discover the right approach to unlock this digital vault? 💻 This challenge will test your problem-solving skills and teach you techniques used by security professionals worldwide. 🕵️♂️
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ZIP Cracker - Challenge Description
Challenge Overview
Welcome to ZIP Cracker! In this challenge, you'll encounter a password-protected ZIP archive that contains sensitive information. Your mission is to crack the password protection using various password cracking techniques and tools to access the encrypted contents and extract the hidden flag.
Learning Objectives
- Master ZIP archive password cracking techniques and methodologies
- Learn to use specialized tools for encrypted archive analysis
- Understand hash extraction and offline password cracking workflows
- Practice systematic approaches to password-protected file security assessment
Challenge Details
You are provided with a password-protected ZIP archive (secret_archive.zip) containing what appears to be confidential data. The archive uses standard ZIP encryption and is protected by a password. Your task is to crack the password using appropriate tools and techniques, then extract the flag from the archive contents.
Technical Background
ZIP archives can be protected using various encryption methods, with traditional ZIP encryption being relatively weak compared to modern standards. This challenge demonstrates common password-based archive protection vulnerabilities and the importance of strong password policies for file encryption.