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live data
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live data /n./ 1. Data that is written to be interpreted and
takes over program flow when triggered by some un-obvious
operation, such as viewing it. One use of such hacks is to break
security. For example, some smart terminals have commands that
allow one to download strings to program keys; this can be used to
write live data that, when listed to the terminal, infects it with
a security-breaking virus that is triggered the next time a
hapless user strikes that key. For another, there are some
well-known bugs in vi that allow certain texts to send
arbitrary commands back to the machine when they are simply viewed.
2. In C code, data that includes pointers to function hooks
(executable code). 3. An object, such as a trampoline, that
is constructed on the fly by a program and intended to be executed
as code.
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