Parade_buster-final.7z May 2026

The challenge provided a set of 376 individual 7zip archives (e.g., part2_0.7z through part2_375.7z ). Inside these archives were multiple "junk" files (e.g., junk_0.bin ), which initially appeared to be the primary data for extraction. Analysis & Solution

The first file contained the start of the PNG, while the last file ( part2_375.7z ) contained the . Parade_Buster-Final.7z

The file Parade_Buster-Final.7z was the concluding challenge in the series from TastelessCTF 2020 . This write-up details the process of identifying a hidden PNG file embedded across hundreds of separate archives. Challenge Overview The challenge provided a set of 376 individual

: To solve this, a script was used to loop through all 376 files, extract a specific block of bytes (typically 0x11 bytes) from each, and concatenate them. Final Result The file Parade_Buster-Final

: Opening the first archive ( part2_0.7z ) in a hex editor revealed a PNG header ( 89 50 4E 47 ) and an IHDR chunk buried within the file structure itself, rather than in the extracted contents. The Pattern :