Журнал (Journal)

Platform: duckerz | Category: OSINT | Type: Challenge | Difficulty: Easy | OS: Linux | Author: XESXOR | Date: 2026-01-09 | Status: Solved Techniques: cross-reference, digital-archive-searching, ocr-bypass, pdf-analysis

Summary

Task: Find the name of a 39-year-old programmer mentioned in a magazine issue, given only a partial cover image. Solution: Identified the magazine as Xakep #109 (January 2008), located the X-Profile section featuring Alan Cox.

Журнал (Journal) — Duckerz CTF

Description

Из моего любимого журнала, осталась только одна картинка, но я точно помню, что в этом же выпуске писали про одного талантливого программиста 39 лет. Совсем забыл как его звали... Пример флага: DUCKERZ{Имя_Фамилия}

Analysis

Step 1: Examining the Provided Image

Starting with the analysis of the journal.jpg image, we see a magazine cover. However, the image quality is not good enough to read all the details clearly. Nevertheless, we can distinguish: ‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍

• The "XAKEP" logo (Russian hacker magazine)
• Issue number: #109
• Month and year: January 2008

┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│           XAKEP ☭                   │
│                                     │
│           №109                      │
│           ЯНВАРЬ 2008               │
│                                     │
│   [размытое содержимое обложки]     │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘

Step 2: Identifying the Source

"Xakep" magazine is a well-known Russian-language magazine about computer security, hacking, and programming. The first step to solving this is to find the full version of this issue. ‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍

Solution

Step 3: Finding the Magazine Archive

Official Xakep magazine website: https://xakep.ru

The website has an archive of issues. Issue #109 from January 2008 is available at:

https://xakep.ru/issues/xa/109/

Step 4: Downloading the PDF Version

Download the full PDF version of the magazine for detailed analysis:

 bash read-only • copy allowed Copy
wget https://xakep.ru/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/109.pdf

Step 5: Searching for Information About the 39-Year-Old Programmer

The magazine has various sections. We are looking for information about a programmer aged 39. ‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍

Key search terms:

• "интервью" (interview)
• "программист" (programmer)
• "39 лет" (39 years old)
• "X-Profile" (section featuring profiles of notable figures)

Using grep to search the PDF (after converting to text or using the built-in search in a PDF viewer):

 bash read-only • copy allowed Copy
# Поиск в PDF
pdftotext 109.pdf - | grep -i "39"
pdftotext 109.pdf - | grep -i "программист"
pdftotext 109.pdf - | grep -i "интервью"

Step 6: Locating the Spread

In the X-Profile section (pages 91-92), we find a profile of a famous programmer: ‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍

Pages 91-92, X-Profile: Alan Cox (Алан Кокс)

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    X-Profile                            │
│                                                         │
│   Алан Кокс (Alan Cox)                                  │
│   Возраст: 39 лет                                       │
│                                                         │
│   Талантливый программист и известный деятель           │
│   в области свободного ПО. Один из ключевых             │
│   разработчиков ядра Linux.                             │
│                                                         │
│   [Фотография и подробная биография]                     │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍

Step 7: Verifying the Information

Alan Cox (Алан Кокс) — British programmer:

• Born: July 5, 1968
• Age in 2008: 39-40 years old ✓
• Known as one of the key Linux kernel developers
• Worked on the networking subsystem
• Made significant contributions to SELinux
• Well-known free software activist

This fully matches the task condition: "talented programmer aged 39".

OSINT Methodology

Applied Techniques

1. Image analysis — examining the magazine cover to identify the publication
2. Digital archaeology — searching for archived versions of print publications
3. Cross-verification — comparing found information with known facts
4. Contextual search — using specific terms to quickly locate information ‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍

Tools

Key Indicators for Solution

This technique should be applied when:

• There is an image of a print publication (magazine, newspaper)
• Information from a specific issue is needed
• Limited data is available (issue number, date, topic)
• The image is low quality and unreadable

Additional Information

‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍

About Xakep Magazine

Xakep (Hacker) is a Russian monthly magazine about computer security, first published in 1999. The magazine covers topics such as:

• Information security
• Hacking and exploits
• Programming
• Operating systems
• Networks and networking technologies

About the X-Profile Section

X-Profile is a regular section of the magazine that publishes profiles of notable figures in IT and information security. Over time, the magazine has featured profiles of personalities such as:

• Linus Torvalds
• Alan Cox
• Richard Stallman
• And many others ‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍

Conclusion

The task required skills in working with digital archives and the ability to find information in large documents. The key to the solution was correctly identifying the magazine and its issue, after which finding the needed information came down to simply browsing the relevant section.

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Solved: January 9, 2026
Author: Writeup Agent ‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍