Can You Trace a Hidden Beacon to Its Source? A Free Digital Forensics & Reverse Engineering Challenge

#ctf #readteam #cybersecurity

Every file tells a story.

Sometimes it's obvious. Other times, it's buried beneath layers of data, hidden artifacts, and carefully crafted deception. In the real world, security analysts spend countless hours investigating files that appear completely ordinary until they discover they're anything but.

That's exactly the idea behind The Beacon Protocol.

We've built a free Capture The Flag (CTF) challenge designed around digital forensics, reverse engineering, and the investigative mindset used by modern SOC and threat intelligence teams.

The Story

A specimen recovered during a routine threat intelligence sweep appears harmless at first glance.

However, investigators believe it's quietly transmitting a signal to an unknown destination.

Your mission is simple:

Find the beacon.

Understand what it's doing.

Follow it all the way back to its source.

Nothing is handed to you. Every discovery reveals the next piece of the investigation until you recover the final mission flag.

What You'll Practice

Unlike many beginner CTFs that focus on isolated puzzles, The Beacon Protocol follows a chained investigation where every stage builds upon the previous one.

You'll encounter techniques involving:

Digital Forensics
File and data extraction
Reverse Engineering
Network traffic analysis
Multi-stage investigations
Thinking like a real incident responder

If you're learning malware analysis, DFIR, or reverse engineering, this challenge is a practical way to sharpen those skills.

Who Is It For?

The challenge is suitable for:

Security students
Reverse engineers
Digital forensics analysts
SOC analysts
Blue teamers
Anyone interested in cybersecurity investigations

No team is required, and participation is completely free.

Ready to Investigate?

If you think you can trace the beacon back to its source, read the briefing and download the specimen.

Challenge: The Beacon Protocol

Read the mission briefing and start your investigation:

https://ctf.astralguard.online/events/the-beacon-protocol

Expected flag format:

ASTRA{...}