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Спецслужбы (Secret Services)

XESXOR9/2/20263 min read
#osint#custom#medium#document-number-extraction#fbi-vault-search#foia-document-research#historical-figure-identificati

Спецслужбы (Secret Services)

Platform: hackerlab | Category: OSINT | Type: Challenge | Difficulty: Medium | OS: NA | Author: XESXOR | Date: 2026-03-08 | Status: Solved Techniques: document-number-extraction, fbi-vault-search, foia-document-research, historical-figure-identification

Summary

Task: Find the FBI case number of a declassified document about a famous person who was surveilled but dismissed as paranoid. Solution: Identified Ernest Hemingway through the clues, found his FBI file on FBI Vault, extracted the full case number 64-HQ-23312 including the HQ field office code.

Спецслужбы (Secret Services) — HackerLab

Description

Они следили, а параноиком называли его. К счастью, у них есть привычка рассекречивать данные. Назовите номер дела этого рассекреченного документа.

Translation: "They were watching, and they called him a paranoid. Fortunately, they have a habit of declassifying data. Name the case number of this declassified document."

Flag format: CODEBY{DOCUMENT-NUMBER}

Analysis

Key Clues in the Description

  1. "Они следили" (They were watching) — indicates surveillance by a government agency
  2. "параноиком называли его" (they called him a paranoid) — a famous person who complained about surveillance but was dismissed as paranoid
  3. "у них есть привычка рассекречивать данные" (they have a habit of declassifying data) — points to an agency that declassifies documents (FBI through FOIA, CIA, etc.) ‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍

Identifying the Person

Searching for "famous person + government surveillance + dismissed as paranoid + declassified documents" clearly points to Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961):

  • The FBI surveilled Hemingway for almost 20 years (from the 1940s until his death in 1961)
  • He repeatedly told friends and family that the FBI was watching him, tapping his phones, intercepting his mail
  • Everyone around him — including biographer A.E. Hotchner, wife Mary, friends — thought it was paranoia
  • He was hospitalized in psychiatric clinics and received electroshock therapy partly due to this "paranoia"
  • He committed suicide on July 2, 1961
  • Years later, declassified FBI documents confirmed the surveillance was real — the FBI had indeed been watching him on orders from J. Edgar Hoover ‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍

Solution

Step 1: Finding Hemingway's FBI File

Hemingway's FBI file is publicly available on FBI Vault: https://vault.fbi.gov/ernest-miller-hemingway

The file was obtained through Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, first by Professor Jeffrey Meyers in January 1983.

Step 2: Determining the Case Number

The FBI case number was found through several sources:

  1. OCR text from the actual FBI document (downloaded from Internet Archive): The title page shows 64- [HS-23312 (OCR error, correct is 64-HQ-23312) ‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍

  2. Academic reference from Springer: "Ernest Hemingway FBI file. CD-ROM. File number 64–23312"

  3. Archival reference from Boise State University: "FBI and US government correspondence originals located in File 64-23312, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Washington D.C."

Step 3: FBI Case Number Format

The full FBI case number format: 64-HQ-23312

  • 64 = Classification number (Foreign Counterintelligence / Espionage)
  • HQ = Field office code (Headquarters in Washington)
  • 23312 = Sequential case number ‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍

Step 4: Flag Format Adjustment

The first attempt with CODEBY{64-23312} (without the HQ component) was rejected. The correct flag with the full FBI case number format:

CODEBY{REDACTED}

Lessons

  1. FBI case number format: Classification-FieldOffice-CaseNumber. The "HQ" (Headquarters) component was critical and initially missed
  2. Ernest Hemingway — the most famous example of a person dismissed as paranoid whose surveillance was later confirmed by declassified FBI documents
  3. When a flag is rejected try different format variations of the same answer — in this case the full FBI case number format with field office code was required
  4. FBI Vault (vault.fbi.gov) — the primary source for declassified FBI documents available through FOIA ‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍

References

  • FBI Vault — Ernest Hemingway: https://vault.fbi.gov/ernest-miller-hemingway
  • Internet Archive — OCR text of FBI documents
  • Academic sources (Springer, Boise State University) for case number confirmation ‍​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‍