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CyberChef

Introduction to CyberChef​

CyberChef is a web-based tool designed for cyber operations and data analysis. It provides a graphical interface for performing a variety of data manipulation tasks, making it particularly useful for cybersecurity professionals, digital forensics experts, and data analysts.

Features​

  • Data Transformation: Convert and transform data between different formats such as hexadecimal, base64, and binary. CyberChef can handle complex encodings and decodings with ease.

  • Encryption and Decryption: Supports a wide range of cryptographic algorithms, including AES, RSA, and hashing functions like SHA-256. You can encrypt and decrypt data directly within the tool.

  • Data Analysis: Perform operations such as data extraction, pattern recognition, and statistical analysis. CyberChef provides a suite of built-in operations to analyze and manipulate data.

  • Recipe Automation: Create and save “recipes” that define a sequence of operations to apply to data. This feature allows for repetitive tasks to be automated and shared with others.

  • Extensive Library of Operations: Includes operations for encoding/decoding, compression, encryption, data conversion, and more. The library is continually updated with new features and capabilities.

Using CyberChef​

To get started with CyberChef:

  1. Accessing CyberChef: CyberChef is available online at CyberChef's official website. It can also be run locally by downloading and hosting it on your own server.

  2. Basic Operations:

    • Enter Data: Input data into the input field or load data from a file.
    • Apply Operations: Select operations from the left-hand panel and configure them as needed. Drag and drop operations to build your recipe.
    • View Results: Results are displayed in the output field. You can copy the results or download them as needed.

  3. Creating Recipes:

    • Click on the "Save" button to store your current operations as a recipe.
    • Share recipes by exporting them as JSON files or using the shareable URL feature.

  4. Advanced Features:

    • Scripting: CyberChef supports custom JavaScript code to extend functionality.
    • Regular Expressions: Utilize regular expressions to perform complex data extraction and manipulation tasks.

Using CyberChef Offline​

If you want to run CyberChef offline, you can use Docker:

docker pull gchq/cyberchef
docker run -d -p 8080:80 gchq/cyberchef

If you don't know how to use Docker, the official website works fine.

Examples​

Encoding and Decoding Base64​

To encode data in Base64:

  1. Enter your data into the input field.
  2. Select the "To Base64" operation from the list.
  3. View the Base64 encoded result.

To decode Base64 data:

  1. Enter Base64 data into the input field.
  2. Select the "From Base64" operation from the list.
  3. View the decoded result.

Encryption and Decryption​

To encrypt data with AES:

  1. Enter your plaintext into the input field.
  2. Select the "AES Encrypt" operation.
  3. Configure the encryption key and parameters.
  4. View the encrypted result.

To decrypt AES-encrypted data:

  1. Enter the encrypted data into the input field.
  2. Select the "AES Decrypt" operation.
  3. Provide the encryption key and parameters.
  4. View the decrypted result.

External Resources​