A tool to replace local environment info in binaries

[KOLANICH]

Project description

Sometimes when one compiles software, it turns out the libs built capture various sorts of local environment information, like paths. It especially happens in software in Rust, where the compiler put this info into panic messages, and there is no way to disable it for third-party crates, but it also happens in software in C++ since the compiler has macros like FILE.

Presence of such kind of info causes builds being non-deterministic and also causes leaks of sensitive information like local paths, including user names and parent directories, which can give insight into private life of the developer and facilitate reverse engineering of a module.

So it is proposed to create a software which will scan binaries on strings looking like paths and replace them to the ones relatively to the base dir. It is a shortening operation, so can be done in-place, while the rest of the string can be replaced with neutral padding, like zeros and whitespaces.

Relevant Technology

• strings command line utility
• C++/Rust, also it is possible to implement it in bash and any other scripting language, since strings returns offsets.
• memory mapping
• std::filesystem

Complexity and required time

Complexity

• Beginner - This project requires no or little prior knowledge of the technolog(y|ies) specified to contribute to the project

Required time (ETA)

• Little work - A couple of days

Categories

• Developer Tooling