Class 05 · KP 07 / 26

Strings: The Cheapest Big Win

ASCII strings: 1 byte per char (classic strings).
Wide strings: UTF-16LE, 2 bytes per char —- common in Windows APIs. Native strings misses these by default; use strings -el or a PE-aware tool.
Extract both. Malware config often lives in wide strings.

Key Takeaway

Always pull both ASCII and UTF-16LE strings, or you will miss half the sample's secrets.