What is CyberChef?
CyberChef is a user-friendly web application created by GCHQ for the analysis and decoding of data, eliminating the necessity for intricate tools or programming languages. This versatile tool can perform a wide range of cyber operations directly within a web browser. Its functionalities encompass basic tasks such as XOR or Base64, as well as more advanced encryption methods like AES, DES, and Blowfish. Additionally, it facilitates tasks like creating binary and hex dumps, compressing and decompressing data, calculating hashes and checksums, parsing IPv6 and X.509, adjusting character encodings, and much more.
CyberChef, a versatile tool, offers a spectrum of functionalities neatly categorized into:
- Encode/Encrypt
- Decode/Decrypt
- Format Data
- Parse Data
- Compress Data
- Extract Data
- Perform Arithmetic Functions against Data
- Defang Data
Beyond these, CyberChef unveils a plethora of capabilities.
How does it work?
This robust tool unfolds across four key domains:
- Input Box (Top Right): Seamlessly accepts user input through typing, pasting, or dragging files or text.
- Output Box (Bottom Right): Instantly showcases the results of the processing.
- Operations List (Far Left): Houses a comprehensive collection of categorized and searchable operations.
- Recipe Box (Center): Empowers users to effortlessly drag desired operations, set arguments, and configure options.
Operations exhibit diverse complexities, allowing users the flexibility to employ as many as needed.
To harness CyberChef’s potential, users can access the platform online or locally (if downloaded). Simply select an operation on the left, input data on the right, and leverage the search bar for swift access or add operations to the Favorites list.
Operations are intelligently grouped into categories and subcategories. For instance, within the Date and Time group, users can find operations like Parse Date Time, Translate Date Time Format, From UNIX Timestamp, To UNIX Timestamp, and Extract Dates.
A double-click swiftly loads the selected operation, many of which are customizable. For example, with ‘From UNIX Timestamp,’ users can effortlessly switch input unit formats. Once the input and operations are set, the output is displayed immediately. Users can conveniently save, copy, or switch input and output fields.
Using CyberChef
CyberChef stands as a user-friendly tool catering to both technical and non-technical users, facilitating exploration of data formats, encryption, and compression. Its intuitive drag-and-drop interface ensures accessibility for a diverse user base. Additionally, the platform visually demystifies programming concepts, offering insights into functions, order of operations, data types, and step-by-step data manipulation.
CyberChef can be downloaded from GitHub to run on your local machine, or it can be used inside a browser here.
