64-bit Intel Assembly Language Programming for Hackers

64-bit Intel Assembly Language Programming for Hackers

Level of Instruction: Beginner

Instructed by: Wesley McGrew

Abstract:

Assembly language has a reputation for being intimidating, but once you learn the basics--and know how to read the documentation for the rest--you can easily pick up the rest. There are many interesting fields of study in computer security that depend on the "closer to the metal" knowledge you'll gain from learning to code in assembly:

- Software reverse engineering

- Vulnerability and exploit research

- Malware/implant development

- Digital forensics

...among others. There is no substitute for the confidence that you gain from being able to research and understand computer systems at lower levels of abstraction.

The purpose of this workshop is to introduce Intel x64 architecture and assembly language to the attendees. We will be using the Microsoft Macro Assembler, and we will be examining our code step-by-step in the x64dbg debugger. No prior programming experience is required--we will be working on things from first principles. There will be few slides. This is a new version of the workshop that makes better use of the x64dbg debugger to illustrate concepts of the class, live. Attendees can follow along with their own laptops and programming environments.