How to avoid hacking of the labview excec file?

[vmo]

Hi
Is it anyone out there that knows the best way to protect a labview executable file from hackers.
I want to write a code that checks hardware locks once a while and I don't want hackers to bypass the lock-checking-loop of the code. If I write the code in labview, does it give my code a better protection (because of run-time engine) comparing to C++?

[Enrique]

vmo;

Yes, no, maybe... The problems you are stating are not unique to LabVIEW. Understanding that, at the end, your software is a bunch of bits, how can you protect those bits? Hardware locks (dongles, etc.) are one of the preferred methods to protect soft code, but still not a problem for the seasoned hacker.

Determining the right protection for your software starts by having a good understanding of threats, assets, policies, etc, that affects your particular application. I strongly recommend you to talk with somebody knowledgeable in performing security assessments. You mean something specific in your phrase "the best way to protect a LabVIEW executable file from hackers". The job of the security analyst is to accurately identify your security needs and t
o suggest adequate safeguards (incorporated at design) or countermeasures (for existing applications).

This may sound expensive, but it pays off quickly. The value of your product (not the price, but the value of your product as an asset to your customers) will increase dramatically. It blows my mind when I see developers making impressive applications but with little or no security at all, putting way too much security so the product becomes unreasonable expensive, or (the worst case) getting a false sense of security because the protection used were not well thought out.

Regards;
Enrique Vargas
www.visecurity.com

[Wiebe@CARYA]

Hi,

It's probably more difficult to crack a labview program then a c++ program.
(Because c++ compilers are more common, and are better known, so debuggers
(both the people and the programs) are optimised for it).

If you're looking for a way to protect your code that is absolute failsafe,
I think you can stop looking, because it's not possible.

To make a reasonable protection in LabVIEW, I'd do the following. Make a vi
that opens the executable (the exe that is running), and that calculates a
checksum (e.g. xor every 32 bytes with some large number, and with the
previous result, add some bit shifting). Make the routine so, that it skips
values between e.g. ###. The routine should check the value between #'s with
the calculated results. In the diagram make
a string constant or label that
has nothing but #'s in it, large enough to fit the resulting checksum.

Now, compile the exe, calculate the crc, put the result in the exe, between
###. When the exe run's, the vi calculates the crc, compares it with the
embedded crc, and if something is changed, the exe won't run. To really make
it difficult, you can make 10 vi's that check the crc, all slightly
different.

Regards,

Wiebe.



"vmo" wrote in message
news:5065000000080000007AFF0000-1079395200000@exchange.ni.com...
> Hi
> Is it anyone out there that knows the best way to protect a labview
> executable file from hackers.
> I want to write a code that checks hardware locks once a while and I
> don't want hackers to bypass the lock-checking-loop of the code. If I
> write the code in labview, does it give my code a better protection
> (because of run-time engine) comparing to C++?