Data Protection API

Abstract: This foundation guide to Windows programming covers the enhancements of Windows 3.1. These include the new Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) protocol, the printing and TrueType font application programming interface (API) and more. As useful to owners of the current edition as the new Windows programmers, this book is packed with explanations, insights, tried and tested programming techniques and scores of sample programs written in C.

Abstract: From the Publisher: With Programming Microsoft Internet Explorer 5, you can build and deploy applications faster, cheaper, and with broader reach than with any other platform. Whether you're simply adding help to a Web page or developing a full-featured Windows application, you'll find the detailed guidance and practical code samples you need to get productive quickly." "Drawing on his extensive experience supporting Microsoft Internet Explorer customers, the author leads you skillfully through common programming challenges - helping you develop dynamic, easy-to-use applications with simpler code and less production time.

Abstract: This paper presents the experimental results that were obtained by implementing the payload of a cryptovirus on the Microsoft Windows platform. A novel countermeasure against cryptoviral extortion is presented that forces the API caller to demonstrate that an authorized party can recover the asymmetrically encrypted data. The attack is based entirely on the Microsoft Cryptographic API and the needed API calls are covered in detail. The exact sequence of API calls that is used for both the viral payload and the code for key generation, decryption, and so on is given. More specifically, it is shown that by using 8 types of API calls and 72 lines of ANSI C code, the payload can hybrid encrypt sensitive data and hold it hostage on the host computer system. These findings demonstrate the ease with which one can apply cryptography to devise the payload of a cryptovirus when a cryptographic API is readily available on host machines.

Abstract: A generalized applications programming interface (API) is inserted as a separate level above the API's of the operating system in a data processing system and used to invoke a group of operating system API's having similar functions, such as the starting of sessions, processes and threads in the OS/2™ operating system. The generalized API includes at least one parameter which contains coded information specifying a plurality of parameters which must be specified to invoke an operating system level API. The function of decoding the parameter relieves the programmer of the burden of separately specifying each parameter and flag of the operating system level API to be invoked. The use of a generalized API further relieves the programmer from the burden of detailed knowledge of the plural operating system level API's of the group and renders them transparent. Since the generalized API is arranged to output code to invoke the operating system level API's, substitution of code to be output allows application of the generalized API to different operating systems. Accordingly, the generalized code in an application program, permitted by the generalized API, permits programs to be developed which are not operating system specific and which can then be ported between data processors regardless of the operating system existing on such data processors.