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A polymorphic engine (sometimes called mutation engine or mutating engine) is a software component that uses polymorphic code to alter the payload while preserving the same functionality. Polymorphic engines are used almost exclusively in malware , with the purpose of being harder for antivirus software to detect.
Polymorphic algorithms make it difficult for such software to recognize the offending code because it constantly mutates. Malicious programmers have sought to protect their encrypted code from this virus-scanning strategy by rewriting the unencrypted decryption engine (and the resulting encrypted payload) each time the virus or worm is propagated.
In hacking, a shellcode is a small piece of code used as the payload in the exploitation of a software vulnerability.It is called "shellcode" because it typically starts a command shell from which the attacker can control the compromised machine, but any piece of code that performs a similar task can be called shellcode.
Self-modifying code is also sometimes used by programs that do not want to reveal their presence, such as computer viruses and some shellcodes. Viruses and shellcodes that use self-modifying code mostly do this in combination with polymorphic code. Modifying a piece of running code is also used in certain attacks, such as buffer overflows.
Metamorphic code is used by computer viruses to avoid the pattern recognition of anti-virus software.Metamorphic viruses often translate their own binary code into a temporary representation, editing the temporary representation of themselves and then translate the edited form back to machine code again. [1]
The Smeg Virus Construction Kit (or SMEG) is a polymorphic engine written by virus writer Chris Pile, known as The Black Baron. SMEG is an acronym for Simulated Metamorphic Encryption Generator. SMEG is an acronym for Simulated Metamorphic Encryption Generator.
A polymorphic packer is a file binder with a polymorphic engine. It thus has the ability to make its payload mutate over time, so it is more difficult to detect and remove. [ citation needed ]
Composition over inheritance (or composite reuse principle) in object-oriented programming (OOP) is the principle that classes should favor polymorphic behavior and code reuse by their composition (by containing instances of other classes that implement the desired functionality) over inheritance from a base or parent class. [2]