Tradecraft Complex Engagements

Complex, multi-stage engagements

Hard targets differ in kind, not just difficulty. The path is usually a chain of 2–4 bugs wrapped in deliberate dead-ends — sometimes needing source review, custom exploit work, reversing, or a crypto attack — and it often spans multiple hosts and sessions. Wins come from disciplined enumeration and ruthless dead-end tracking, not a bigger exploit. In-scope, authorized targets only (see tradecraft-scope-roe).

Keep a working record (per engagement)

engagement/
  state.md          # live status + a "haven't tried yet" list
  deadends.md       # ruled-out leads WITH the reason each was dropped   ← the key habit
  chains/           # working exploit chains / PoC drafts, one link at a time
  findings/         # confirmed findings + evidence
  hosts/<host>/     # one subdir per internal host reached

Extended method

1. Exhaustive recon. Every port, vhost, parameter, version string. The lead is often in the thing you skipped (recon-arsenal, recon-content-discovery).
2. Clue harvesting. Log everything, including what looks irrelevant — odd headers, unusual filenames, custom apps, strange responses.
3. Foothold by chain. Expect to combine bugs (e.g. SSRF → internal service → deserialization → RCE). Build it in chains/, verifying each link before adding the next (exploit-chaining).
4. Stabilize + situational awareness. Get a stable shell, then map users/services/internal network before moving.
5. Pivot / lateral. Enumerate internal reachability; one hosts/<host>/ per host; repeat the loop per host (network-pivoting-tunneling).
6. Privilege escalation (often custom). Standard checks first, but be ready for a target-specific vector — a custom SUID binary, a bespoke service, an ACL path (privesc-arsenal).
7. Write up the chain. Document it end to end; each link needs reproduction steps and evidence (reporting-bug-bounty-writeup).

Dead-end discipline (the skill that separates good operators)

• The moment a lead dies, write it in deadends.md with why it's ruled out. This stops you re-walking dead-ends over a multi-day engagement and reveals what you actually haven't tried.
• Keep a live "haven't tried yet" list in state.md. When stuck, work that list before reaching for exotic exploits.
• Truly stuck? Re-run enumeration on the least-examined service, diff against earlier output, and re-read the clue log. The path is usually already in your notes.

Custom-exploit workflow

Read any public PoC fully before running it and note the source (exploit-poc-development). When a PoC needs adapting, keep a clear record of what changed and why — that becomes report content and a capture-worthy new skill. Review application source when you have it: auth logic, input handling, serialization, crypto (code-review-methodology).

Capture what you learn

When an engagement teaches a reusable technique (a novel chain, a bespoke privesc, a crypto attack), add it as a new stability: learning technique skill under the right domain so future work benefits (see the library README.md).

Working style: enumerate first, track dead-ends, build chains incrementally, and explain your reasoning — on complex targets the reasoning is the skill.