new | show | ask | jobs Github

DylanMerigaud 2 days ago

Self-decrypting HTML? That's an innovative approach.

▲

emurlin 2 days ago | parent | next [-]

Yeah, I was inspired by self-extracting archives. I wanted to share files with basically no dependencies.

The goal was:

1. Something that didn't require any installation (assuming a web browser)

2. Have a single file with no network that could self-decrypt

3. Be fully auditable

The second point is done by having (sort of(*)) reproducible builds and embedded OpenPGP signatures.

The first point is made by cleverly manipulating the HTML structure so that it can decrypt without breaking the PGP signature. It can even decrypt using bare openssl (which was a design goal too, though getting the exact structure right took some work and bug reports).

The third point is accomplished by the first two, and by the source being freely available.

(*) Depends on the OS at the moment.

	▲	dang a day ago \| parent [-]
		I'm going to move this description to the top and re-up the post - I hope that's ok!

▲

112233 a day ago | parent | prev [-]

Somebody already has copied this innovative approach and travelled to past apparently: https://acme.com/software/securepage/

▲

jszymborski a day ago | parent [-]

Methods like these go way further back than 2010... I recall one that had a reward promised if you could break it.

EDIT: Here's a patent from 2006 [0]

[0] https://image-ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloa...

▲

Hyperlisk 19 hours ago | parent [-]

Here's one I remember: http://jgae.de/sdaeng.htm

From here: https://pajhome.org.uk/crypt/md5/uses.html#sdp

I used this many years ago, like literally 20 years ago. And it appears to have had a bounty! Maybe it is what you recall as well!

	▲	janfoeh 13 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Once upon a time, 1password (macOS pwd manager) vault files could be opened standalone in a browser, which was extremely nifty.