This challenge teaches the absolute basics of netcat ( nc ): connecting to a remote host and port, reading what the service sends back, and responding correctly to get the flag — the very first building block of any network/pwn-oriented CTF.

Platform: picoGym

Category: Misc

Points: 50 pts

Difficulty: Beginner

Tools: netcatnc

Challenge description

The challenge simply provides a connection command to a remote service:

"Can you connect to this service and figure out what it wants?"

nc saturn.picoctf.net 54321

No binary to download, no file to analyze — everything happens live over the network, via a raw TCP connection. It's the perfect opportunity to learn the single most fundamental tool of any network-oriented CTF: netcat .

Step 1 — Connect with netcat

netcat (often shortened to nc ) opens a raw TCP or UDP connection to any host and port, and lets you interact directly with the service by typing text on the keyboard.…