Interested in diving into Windows implant development using C++? This article offers a straightforward example by exploring Microsoft’s documentation for each API in the WinInet family.
While artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are hot topics, they’re more than just cyber buzzwords. AI can play a role in malware development, an area I’ve explored extensively in my work. However, AI-generated code often falls short, lacking proper error checking and utilizing incorrect parameters and APIs. This underscores the need for improvement in AI-generated code.
Things get trickier when dealing with unfamiliar APIs. Want to implement certificate pinning or encrypt your communications using TLS? I attempted to use AI to generate code for these tasks, with less-than-stellar results.
For HTTP tasks, WinHttp and WinINet are the primary API families. Microsoft recommends using WinINet unless you’re building a service. Let’s focus on WinINet with a basic HTTP POST example.
Firstly, what is WinINet? It’s Microsoft’s tool for enabling HTTP methods to access the Internet. Creating an Internet session is the first step, accomplished with the InternetOpen API. Error checking is omitted here for brevity.
Next, establish an Internet connection handle using InternetConnect. Again, detailed documentation is available on Microsoft’s website.
Then, open the request with HttpOpenRequest. Despite the name, this API belongs to the WinINet library, not WinHttp.
Once the request is set up, send it using HttpSendRequest.
After sending the request, validate the data using Wireshark or similar tools. In this simple example, raw data is sent, but JSON or Base64-encoded data could also be used.
To handle the response, use InternetReadFile to read the status code. This example treats the response as a string.
For more advanced tasks like certificate validation, projects like CertCheck by Tim Malcom Vetter showcase WinINet APIs.
In summary, this article provides a basic overview of using WinINet APIs for making HTTP requests. Understanding how these APIs work together is crucial for effective HTTP communication in Windows development. If you’re new to C or Windows development, consider exploring introductory resources to build your skills.
Detailed article and source: darkreading.com
