Something that might help would be to ask high score candidates to type in the 
letters depicted on a garbled image - so at least then you know that the bot 
has to recognise characters.

Paul
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Michel Scoz 
  To: [email protected] 
  Sent: Wednesday, May 28, 2008 12:45 PM
  Subject: RES: [flexcoders] Re: The "High Score" Problem


  About the client side (swf file), you could always try to encrypt the swf 
file with "SWF Encrypt". people won't be able to decompile and use it as their 
own. Actually it will decompile but without any usable and/or compilable code.

   

  Of course this does not solve the network sniffer problem, but one of your 
concerns is gone.

   

  Cya,

  Michel.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  De: [email protected] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Em nome de kenny14390
  Enviada em: terça-feira, 27 de maio de 2008 15:27
  Para: [email protected]
  Assunto: [flexcoders] Re: The "High Score" Problem

   

  > > There is no such thing as Flash application security? 
  > 
  > Against what ? 
  > How much is the value of the prize ? 
  > Who is attacking you ? Why ?

  The prizes are pretty big, so there is a justified concern for
  security. The "attackers" would be facebook users, so they will
  usually be 18-25.

  --- In [email protected], Tom Chiverton <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
  wrote:
  >
  > On Tuesday 27 May 2008, kenny14390 wrote:
  > > Is the simple conclusion that Flash applications are inherently
  > > transparent?
  > 
  > Yes, same as a HTML application, in a sense. This is the bane of
  client/server 
  > computing, and *banks* haven't cracked it yet either.
  > However, there are less people with the skills to decompile a Flex
  app than a 
  > JavaScript one. But maybe all they need to do is sniff the network
  traffic...
  > 
  > > Does SSL patch any of these risks?
  > 
  > No, because the user can configure an SSL proxy and see the plain
  text of the 
  > session. But, again, less people will be able to do this.
  > 
  > > There is no such thing as Flash application security? 
  > 
  > Against what ? 
  > How much is the value of the prize ? 
  > Who is attacking you ? Why ?
  > 
  > Until you answer those questions, how can you evaluate any of the
  various 
  > mitigation's ?
  > For instance, if your attackers are all under 10 (because your app
  is used in 
  > a closed environment, i.e. a school class room, and the login is
  tied to the 
  > attendance list and O/S logged in user) then you probably don't need
  to do 
  > anything else.
  > 
  > > How can a "high score" problem be overcome?
  > 
  > Some sort of CAPTCHA type test should prove there is a user sat at the 
  > computer, but I'm not aware of anyway to verify they're using your
  client and 
  > not another one they built themselves.
  > Given they can intercept your 'calculateChecksumOfYourself()' (or
  whatever) 
  > and just send back the 'right' answer. 
  > 
  > A lot of the time, raising the bar fairly high (require login, SSL) is 
  > probably good enough.
  > In your case, I'd probably want to require unique, verified email
  address too. 
  > Maybe postal too as people tend to have fewer throw away postal
  address' that 
  > actually work :-)
  > 
  > -- 
  > Tom Chiverton
  > 
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