Binary Reconnaissance

First-look analysis of any new binary target. Run these checks before deeper analysis.

Checklist

1. File type: file target
2. Security mitigations: checksec target
3. Symbols: nm target or readelf -s target
4. Strings: strings target | grep -i flag\|win\|shell
5. Disassembly: objdump -M intel -d target > target.asm

Checksec Interpretation

Protection	Enabled	Disabled	Bypass
NX	Can't execute shellcode on stack	Shellcode works	ROP, ret2libc
Canary	Stack smash detected	No protection	Leak canary, brute force
PIE	Addresses randomized	Fixed addresses	Leak code address
RELRO	GOT protected	GOT writable	Can't use GOT overwrite

Quick Wins to Look For

• Functions named win, get_flag, shell, backdoor
• Strings containing flag, /bin/sh, cat flag
• system() or execve() in PLT
• No canary + no PIE = likely simple overflow

Output

Produce context/binary-info.md using the template.