Hacking So with the recent bricks, we need to stop using skeleton and start using Mai right?

[Subscriber0101]

(If you don't know, Skeleton is the old method; you install just sce_sys and eboot as .vpk and FTP the rest of the content.)

From what I hear on Reddit, skeleton installation, because it can be bypassed by bricks, can be dangerous.

So should we now just install games with the English patch of Mai?

Also, I hear that Mai can get updates. How does this work? How do you get updates with Mai?

Also, is there an official English github/page for MaiDump?

 

[dante-feline]

Alternatively you can use a hex editor and search for the string "os0:" afaik.
Mai isn't helping protect against a newer brick method which obfuscates the code as "os%0:" and still works. (and possibly other obfuscations yet to be found.)
I think your best bet is waiting for someone else to confirm if a dump is working and letting them search for the malicious code if you don't want to do it yourself.

 

[Tomy Sakazaki]

Probably adding more "system related" files to the VPK may make vitashell actually check for unnecessary calls that may lead to brick related functions.
In any case, there's actually a github for English translations of maidump
https://github.com/LioMajor/MaiDumpToolEN

 

[WiiUBricker]

What about Vitamin?

 

[SonsofOcelot]

What about Vitamin?

From what I read on Wololos site the newest update for Vitashell has the ability to check vpks for malicious code similar to Mai now. Unless I read that wrong...

Either way this just one other reason I prefer scene releases from the sources. I appreciate the hard work and time that legit dumpers have put into making dumps for the scene but this kinda thing, like the supposed Lego game before, just harms the validity of all non scene dumps cause now everyone be more paranoid (read "extremely skeptical and cautious") about dumps that could very well be legit.

Sad that someone actually took the time and energy to develop something to harm scene rather than help it...

 

[nero99]

From what I read on Wololos site the newest update for Vitashell has the ability to check vpks for malicious code similar to Mai now. Unless I read that wrong...

Either way this just one other reason I prefer scene releases from the sources. I appreciate the hard work and time that legit dumpers have put into making dumps for the scene but this kinda thing, like the supposed Lego game before, just harms the validity of all non scene dumps cause now everyone be more paranoid (read "extremely skeptical and cautious") about dumps that could very well be legit.

Sad that someone actually took the time and energy to develop something to harm scene rather than help it...

bet sony is the creator of this code. i mean, why wouldnt they be?

 

[Count Duckula]

From what I read on Wololos site the newest update for Vitashell has the ability to check vpks for malicious code similar to Mai now. Unless I read that wrong....

Vitashell scanned vpks and prompted if they are unsafe long before mai tool added a similar check for mai dumps.

From YifanLu, one of the members of team molecule:
https://www.reddit.com/r/VitaPiracy..._warning_there_have_been_two_separate/d8a53a3
https://www.reddit.com/r/VitaPiracy..._warning_there_have_been_two_separate/d8achkr

We know that vitshell checks for the following at offset 0x80 of the eboot.bin: 02 00 00 00 00 00 00 2F
If this is found the application is run with a lower level of permissions, which should prevent it from messing with system partitions.
If it is not found, vitashell prompts that the application requests extended permissions. If so proceed at your own risk.

Im not knowledgeable enough to confirm that this protection is 'inherited' by code in suprx files (original bricking code was in the mai.suprx), although yifan did sound quite confident that an application marked as safe and installed via vitashell will provide good protection.

Just checking for the string 'OS0' is insufficient, the calls can quite easily be obfuscated. https://www.reddit.com/r/VitaPiracy/comments/5646fr/someone_just_tried_to_release_a_new_bricker/

 

[SonsofOcelot]

Yeah maybe I did misread that info then. I knew about safe making a vpk/eboot but I figured flow added some new checks in to the install process.