🧩 Newbie puzzles ! 🧩 Solve one and get the MERIT you deserve 🏆

[Fivestar4everMVP]

This is really a nice puzzle, and it's fun, I Initially was confused with the question cus just like the first reply, I didn't see the question, I was like what am I to do with the code?

If you don't have any computer knowledge and asked yourself the same question above, then what you would have done is simply copy the code and paste it on Google search, you will get results like the screenshot below, atleast, that would have given you a head start, have this in mind incase another question comes up 😉😉.

[1714127338]

1714127338

[1714127338]

1714127338

[1714127338]

1714127338

[Rizzrack]

Question 2:

Code:

5wUP8bK2gm91cAcRa5wCXm89Rx91nrx8sCBYsGGghYcaDeWyJtUnejg8mEwYjUnRegSEJ7qPpmDh5fVyMmdL4KUtKxxNV7ycgb1FcGH9SCvpNGmWmiAYexUqdC8gzuH69cauBVcnFVsps2EWKw8QnVkP1Vv5Do1nGYujGPbyHo3nqVcf56USwaQud7ezCiZS8mt6pMnkkoqrpWQCqvc78p3KQKXeBnAj8h7YadRh2rqvBi96hM1sfjk5jaQqbHKwLnhETi7ZpGMCcrZpTw3rdMfSdUnkXGQMs2SkCuEURoutBGYentNN6UBPTwitJEuk95VDADjBizVjfxkqaCtFh1R

[Rizzrack]

Question 2:

Code:

5wUP8bK2gm91cAcRa5wCXm89Rx91nrx8sCBYsGGghYcaDeWyJtUnejg8mEwYjUnRegSEJ7qPpmDh5fVyMmdL4KUtKxxNV7ycgb1FcGH9SCvpNGmWmiAYexUqdC8gzuH69cauBVcnFVsps2EWKw8QnVkP1Vv5Do1nGYujGPbyHo3nqVcf56USwaQud7ezCiZS8mt6pMnkkoqrpWQCqvc78p3KQKXeBnAj8h7YadRh2rqvBi96hM1sfjk5jaQqbHKwLnhETi7ZpGMCcrZpTw3rdMfSdUnkXGQMs2SkCuEURoutBGYentNN6UBPTwitJEuk95VDADjBizVjfxkqaCtFh1R

Any takers to find the answer to this "weird looking" question ?

[NeuroticFish]

Any takers to find the answer to this "weird looking" question ?

Imho the answer can be "any Ripemd-160 hash", and from there I'm a bit lost  
Also I hoped newer users will have better answers.


Edit: nice answer, BitcoinIsABubble, you've just got 2 more merits from me!

[BitcoinIsABubble]

decode from base58 ->  encode to ASCII


What does the following sequence represent? 4405b78d6059e536c36974088a8ed4d9f0f29898

That's the first commit in the Bitcoin github - first version of bitcoin

https://github.com/bitcoin/bitcoin/commit/4405b78d6059e536c36974088a8ed4d9f0f29898

[Rizzrack]

decode from base85 ->  encode to ASCII


What does the following sequence represent? 4405b78d6059e536c36974088a8ed4d9f0f29898

That's the first commit in the Bitcoin github - first version of bitcoin

https://github.com/bitcoin/bitcoin/commit/4405b78d6059e536c36974088a8ed4d9f0f29898

And we have another winner ! Good job !

Code:

5wUP8bK2gm91cAcRa5wCXm89Rx91nrx8sCBYsGGghYcaDeWyJtUnejg8mEwYjUnRegSEJ7qPpmDh5fVyMmdL4KUtKxxNV7ycgb1FcGH9SCvpNGmWmiAYexUqdC8gzuH69cauBVcnFVsps2EWKw8QnVkP1Vv5Do1nGYujGPbyHo3nqVcf56USwaQud7ezCiZS8mt6pMnkkoqrpWQCqvc78p3KQKXeBnAj8h7YadRh2rqvBi96hM1sfjk5jaQqbHKwLnhETi7ZpGMCcrZpTw3rdMfSdUnkXGQMs2SkCuEURoutBGYentNN6UBPTwitJEuk95VDADjBizVjfxkqaCtFh1R

decode from base58 (aka satoshi's version of base64) and you would get

Code:

57 68 61 74 20 64 6F 65 73 20 74 68 65 20 66 6F 6C 6C 6F 77 69 6E 67 20 73 65 71 75 65 6E 63 65 20 72 65 70 72 65 73 65 6E 74 3F 20 34 34 30 35 62 37 38 64 36 30 35 39 65 35 33 36 63 33 36 39 37 34 30 38 38 61 38 65 64 34 64 39 66 30 66 32 39 38 39 38

decode from hex and you would get

Code:

What does the following sequence represent? 4405b78d6059e536c36974088a8ed4d9f0f29898

And YES, 4405b78d6059e536c36974088a8ed4d9f0f29898 is the id of the first bitcoin commit on github !

P.S. I removed your friend's proxy ban as a bonus  

P.S. 2

That's the first commit in the Bitcoin github - first version of bitcoin

More precisely the first version of bitcoin was posted on sourceforge. Since then there were many updates to the code until they started using github

[BitcoinIsABubble]

More precisely the first version of bitcoin was posted on sourceforge. Since then (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5.msg28#msg2Cool there were many updates to the code until they started using github

Oh wow, I didn't know that, pretty awesome to see the original thread here in the forum, thanks for sharing this gem <3

And thanks for unblocking my friend, we are actually coworkers and it might be due to using the same internet connection in the office.

[Rizzrack]

Challenge 4:

Code:

-----BEGIN BITCOIN SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Tjho uijt nfttbhf: "Xf bsf bmm tbuptij fydfqu gps DTX" vtjoh uif tbnf beesftt J bn (1K7neh5scRzVIFOZey39XWXL7gtMqFpYAz)
-----BEGIN BITCOIN SIGNATURE-----
1J7mdg5rbQyUHENYdx39WVWK7fsLpEoXZy
IDt1vr8Ahx4Yt3Rm5zfvwbGIis7MrpSDNx8ev6inxMr+NB8CWOHoTPVeujlfYMpsW58Txp1scaxXY5WtNQhbS94=
-----END BITCOIN SIGNATURE-----

[BitcoinIsABubble]

Challenge 4:

Code:

-----BEGIN BITCOIN SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Tjho uijt nfttbhf: "Xf bsf bmm tbuptij fydfqu gps DTX" vtjoh uif tbnf beesftt J bn (1K7neh5scRzVIFOZey39XWXL7gtMqFpYAz)
-----BEGIN BITCOIN SIGNATURE-----
1J7mdg5rbQyUHENYdx39WVWK7fsLpEoXZy
IDt1vr8Ahx4Yt3Rm5zfvwbGIis7MrpSDNx8ev6inxMr+NB8CWOHoTPVeujlfYMpsW58Txp1scaxXY5WtNQhbS94=
-----END BITCOIN SIGNATURE-----

 Tjho uijt nfttbhf: "Xf bsf bmm tbuptij fydfqu gps DTX" vtjoh uif tbnf beesftt J bn (1K7neh5scRzVIFOZey39XWXL7gtMqFpYAz) when you change every letter to the previous one in the alphabet becomes Sign this message: "We are all satoshi except for CSW" using the same address I am (1J7mdg5rbQyUHENYdx39WVWK7fsLpEoXZy)

I googled a bit and found the key to the address on the web, this way I could sign it. Depending on which one you sign there are two options:

-----BEGIN BITCOIN SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Sign this message: "We are all satoshi except for CSW" using the same address I am (1J7mdg5rbQyUHENYdx39WVWK7fsLpEoXZy)
-----BEGIN SIGNATURE-----
1J7mdg5rbQyUHENYdx39WVWK7fsLpEoXZy
IJyM+uen9fi8xTwaPyI/737LzFoz+xAztMkUjC8/gjuJNqxgolh56/IP7oIT802Q2Vme1ed/Og5+p6HsRVcvHX4=
-----END BITCOIN SIGNED MESSAGE-----


-----BEGIN BITCOIN SIGNED MESSAGE-----
We are all satoshi except for CSW
-----BEGIN SIGNATURE-----
1J7mdg5rbQyUHENYdx39WVWK7fsLpEoXZy
H3AwrGkQBaPNGY6+om6+RG3IXi/4er+7DdkFyFY4e7KWKu8eEgWY889zkaFWPsP23BEDnxxWczoyGwTGBF769NU=
-----END BITCOIN SIGNED MESSAGE-----

[Rizzrack]

-----BEGIN BITCOIN SIGNED MESSAGE-----
We are all satoshi except for CSW
-----BEGIN SIGNATURE-----
1J7mdg5rbQyUHENYdx39WVWK7fsLpEoXZy
H3AwrGkQBaPNGY6+om6+RG3IXi/4er+7DdkFyFY4e7KWKu8eEgWY889zkaFWPsP23BEDnxxWczoyGwTGBF769NU=
-----END BITCOIN SIGNED MESSAGE-----

You're on a roll ! Well done!
Gotta get more creative with the next one  

P.S.

... when you change every letter to the previous one in the alphabet becomes ...

This encoding method is named the Caesar cipher. It is believed this was the way Julius Caesar himself encoded sensitive messages

[Markinzo]

 Am not sure I know whatever is going on here. But my mind tells me that whatever it is must be, must be very relevant. But unfortunately my ignorance impede me.

So I hope am ain't making a mistake by asking what's this about, from the question to even the expected answer?
Thanks!

[Rizzrack]

Am not sure I know whatever is going on here. But my mind tells me that whatever it is must be, must be very relevant. But unfortunately my ignorance impede me.

So I hope am ain't making a mistake by asking what's this about, from the question to even the expected answer?
Thanks!

Thought to award some newbies with merit if they decipher my little puzzle questions. Either if they have the knowledge or learned a few things to figure it out. I know I learned a thing or two while making the questions  

[Rizzrack]

Question 4:

Who sings this song?

00stulowe 00Leopold Martynov 0moonchkins 00Hydroponica 00doaseric  00stulowe 00Leopold Martynov 00natostanco 00zhouguilxy 0linh09 00vyjhfguyhfy 00zimbodog 00jk1234 0leeuwtje 00zhouguilxy 0leeuwtje 00vyjhfguyhfy 00zhouguilxy 0boopathy4613 00zimbodog  00stulowe 00natostanco 00doaseric 00doaseric 0ethioninja  00stulowe 00natostanco 00natostanco 0moonchkins 00vyjhfguyhfy 00Hydroponica 00vyjhfguyhfy 00jk1234 00Hydroponica  00stulowe 00marvel212 00Hydroponica 00zhouguilxy 0leeuwtje 0ethioninja

[Rizzrack]

Hint #1

00stulowe...

[PhoenixZephyrus]

Question 4:

Who sings this song?

00stulowe 00Leopold Martynov 0moonchkins 00Hydroponica 00doaseric  00stulowe 00Leopold Martynov 00natostanco 00zhouguilxy 0linh09 00vyjhfguyhfy 00zimbodog 00jk1234 0leeuwtje 00zhouguilxy 0leeuwtje 00vyjhfguyhfy 00zhouguilxy 0boopathy4613 00zimbodog  00stulowe 00natostanco 00doaseric 00doaseric 0ethioninja  00stulowe 00natostanco 00natostanco 0moonchkins 00vyjhfguyhfy 00Hydroponica 00vyjhfguyhfy 00jk1234 00Hydroponica  00stulowe 00marvel212 00Hydroponica 00zhouguilxy 0leeuwtje 0ethioninja

Well here's what I could get till now

Get the uid from each of the usernames >> we get a binary text >> convert it to ASCII and get "47a984720d165e0e10c64288f422a191594390ef"

Now that seems like a SHA-1 or Ripe-md 160 hash maybe? Not sure how to proceed but that's a clue I guess.

[Rizzrack]

Well here's what I could get till now

Get the uid from each of the usernames >> we get a binary text >> convert it to ASCII and get "47a984720d165e0e10c64288f422a191594390ef"

Now that seems like a SHA-1 or Ripe-md 160 hash maybe? Not sure how to proceed but that's a clue I guess.

So far so good !

Hint #2: that code is SHA1. You have to find out the string that produced that hash by what ever means you see fit and you can give the correct answer

[PhoenixZephyrus]

So far so good !

Hint #2: that code is SHA1. You have to find out the string that produced that hash by what ever means you see fit and you can give the correct answer

But from what I know, SHA-1 is a one way hash right? It isnt possible to decrypt it without maybe brute forcing? Because thats what the hash is meant to be - irreversible?
From what I know, SHA-1 uses a modulo math operator in one of its steps, thus it isn't possible to uniquely identify the original value from which that hash came from.

For example, using a bit of modular arithmetic,

Code:

5 % 5 = 0
10 % 5= 0

Thus its not possible to get whether the original input was 10 or 5 just by having 0 and knowing that we have performed x % 5. This is my understanding...

Is it possible to decrypt a SHA-1 hash? (Stackoverflow)

Unless I'm missing something here...

[nc50lc]

But from what I know, SHA-1 is a one way hash right? It isnt possible to decrypt it without maybe brute forcing? Because thats what the hash is meant to be - irreversible?
-snip-
Unless I'm missing something here...

Yes, you're correct, there's no way to reverse it aside from bruteforce.

But there's only about 600million song titles out there,
just make a database of all the songs titles, create a simple code to perform SHA1 to each of the titles (and probably variations of them) and a typical computer can bruteforce it within a few minutes/hours.
Then you can get 1 merit 

[Rizzrack]

But from what I know, SHA-1 is a one way hash right? It isnt possible to decrypt it without maybe brute forcing?

You are 99% correct.

But there's only about 600million song titles out there,
just make a database of all the songs titles, create a simple code to perform SHA1 to each of the titles

That would be 10 Merit worthy IMO !!!
But what if there already existed such databases somewhere... food for thought  

[PhoenixZephyrus]

But what if there already existed such databases somewhere... food for thought  

There do exist databases for songs but I doubt any such database is nearly complete. I'll take a look though, just because I like solving puzzles and I was learning about hashing the other day in my Algorithms class

EDIT: Okay the only one I could think of that had a dataset available was the Million Song Dataset, and I tried encoding all of the song title names to SHA-1 via some sqlite3 queries and python, and output that out to a csv file. But I couldn't find the hash that I had found in the previous step. My guess is that the database is some different one altogether, I guess I'll give it a few more tries later.