For sending secret messages and dummy messages regularly. It is meant to be used in conjunction with one-time pads. One-time pads provide perfect security for the message itself (if they are handled properly), but adversaries can still tell that messages are being sent, and when they are being sent. To avoid this, dummy messages are uploaded to a website on a regular basis. The messages can also be hidden using steganography.
This application should not be considered secure, and no sensitive information should be entered into it.
Baseline is that the number station will generate a dummy random message, optionally obscure it via steganography, then upload it to an (s)ftp/scp server.
The random message generation actually happens last, so that, next time it is run, the existing message will be uploaded. This way a real message can be generated in the meantime and the next upload time the real message will be uploaded. Because the real message looks random to anyone without the corresponding one-time pad, it cannot be distinguished from the dummy messages.
# Number Station Listener
This application periodically checks a site for numbers and stores them so the user can check whether the message matches any pads.
# Notes
Should have sane defaults, but be built to be part of a more extensible system. Should be able to run other commands for message generation / upload.
Need to be able to support multiple profiles for each.
## Tech
- Installers: JPackage
- Notifications: https://github.com/sshtools/two-slices/blob/master/README.md
- Post to wordpress: https://github.com/ashri/java-wordpress-api/tree/master
## Security considerations
If someone were to take any part of the number station (this software, the server, or intercepting on the way to the recipient), then they could make sure no messages get through (though they couldn't spoof messages without access to the one-time pads).
This weakness is true of nearly all communication methods though. The only way to be certain a message was received is to receive an acknowledgement back.
# Settings/State Format
$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/numbers-station/main-settings.xml
$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/numbers-station/listener-settings.xml
$XDG_STATE_HOME/numbers-station/main.log
$XDG_STATE_HOME/numbers-station/listener.log
$XDG_STATE_HOME/numbers-station/<station-id>-main/next-message.txt
$XDG_STATE_HOME/numbers-station/<station-id>-main/20250114T091633.txt
$XDG_STATE_HOME/numbers-station/<station-id>-listener/20250114T091735.txt
$XDG_STATE_HOME/numbers-station/<station-id>-listener/20250114T091748-read.txt
XDG dirs:
https://superuser.com/a/1767882
On Windows:
https://stackoverflow.com/questions/43853548/xdg-basedir-directories-for-windows
Library to use:
https://github.com/dirs-dev/directories-jvm
# TODO
- [ ] Undo/Redo in message editing
- [ ] Disable/commandeer right-click menu items for message text (otherwise you can wreck the formatting).
- [ ] Make sure numpad works in message editing
And in prefix editing
- [x] Catch and log all exceptions
- [ ] Add a check that the way we set up the scheduler to run the application will actually work. (need a flag argument that will output something particular we can look for).
- [x] Be able to narrow message area so that columns can match whatever message format you're using (minimum window width would keep you from doing that).
- [x] When station is removed/renamed, need to also remove/rename the scheduled task and the corresponding state directory.
- [x] Check for duplicate station names when creating or renaming
- [ ] Test task scheduler task creation for a windows user not on a domain (author needs to include domain when on domain e.g. EI\nathanm)
- [x] Station names with quotes shouldn't be allowed (or we'll need to do escaping for the launch command)
- [ ] Need to be able to handle case where application is open and the scheduled task runs. There's at least contention for the log file (maybe? doesn't seem to mind if multiple instances of the application are running)
- [ ] In all controllers, error handling should be 1. log error 2. Pop up dialog to warn user
- [x] Settings external schedule management should remove the scheduled task
- [ ] Add tests for generateMessage()
- [x] Load message from next-message
- [x] When making changes to the message, show the changes as unsaved until saved.
- [ ] Ensure all GUI elements have accessibility text
- [ ] Embed versioning info
- [ ] Factor out scheduling into a wrapper class that handles all the os-specific stuff internally.
- [ ] If a station name is run which doesn't exist in settings, but has associated files, then prompt the user to delete the files.
- [ ] Fix behavior when settings file is empty
- [ ] Store schedule time with time zone
- [ ] Add tests for StationSettings.nextSendTime()
Note on jars and javafx: https://stackoverflow.com/a/23121897
# 2025-01-27 JAR packaging
```
$modulePath = "$Env:PATH_TO_FX;P:\personal_root\projects\number-station\lib"
$modules = $(
"com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation",
"com.fasterxml.jackson.core",
"com.fasterxml.jackson.dataformat.xml",
"com.fasterxml.jackson.datatype.jsr310",
"result",
"javafx.controls",
"javafx.fxml",
"org.apache.commons.cli"
)
$addModules = $modules -join ","
java/>jar --create --file numbers-station.jar --manifest .\manifest.txt -C out .
java/>java --module-path $modulePath --add-modules $addModules -jar .\numbers-station.jar
```
TODO: package lib jars with this jar
also:
```
jpackage --input . --name numbers-station --main-jar .\numbers-station.jar --main-class name.nathanmcrae.numbersstation.Main --module-path "$Env:PATH_TO_FX;P:\personal_root\projects\number-station\lib" --add-modules javafx.controls,javafx.fxml,com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation,com.fasterxml.jackson.core,com.fasterxml.jackson.dataformat.xml,com.fasterxml.jackson.datatype.jsr310 --type exe
```
# 2025-02-16
Tried to compile a jfx hello world using the openjdk and openjfx packaged in guix, but ran into issues. It looks like more up-to-date versions of openjfx are not available guix.
Might be the next best step is to depend on a binary release of openjfx and see if I can compile on linux like that. Could even have a custom guix package which depends on the openjfx binary release if needed.
# 2025-03-03
Tried some more packaging, but was getting a lot of "Error: automatic module cannot be used with jlink" issues. Not sure if I just wasn't getting those before or what, but the jpackage command above doesn't work now.
The issue seems to be with having non-modular dependencies. This page has some notes at the bottom about packaging non-modular applications: https://openjfx.io/openjfx-docs/#modular
# 2025-03-09
mvn org.apache.maven.plugins:maven-install-plugin:2.5.2:install-file -Dfile=lib/wordpress-xmlrpc-client-1.1-SNAPSHOT.jar -DgroupId=com.tearsofaunicorn.wordpress -DartifactId=wordpress-xmlrpc-client -Dversion=1.1 -Dpackaging=jar -DlocalRepositoryPath=mvn-repo
mvn org.apache.maven.plugins:maven-install-plugin:2.5.2:install-file -Dfile=lib/xmlrpc-client-3.1.3.jar -DgroupId=wordpress -DartifactId=xmlrpc-client -Dversion=3.1.3 -Dpackaging=jar -DlocalRepositoryPath=mvn-repo
# 2025-03-17
Appears to work. Launch is extremely slow
jpackage --input . --name numbers-station --main-jar .\target\numbersstation-1.0-SNAPSHOT.jar --main-class name.nathanmcrae.numbersstation.MainRun --type app-image --dest $HOME/temp/20250316T153044
Failed to generate msi this time :(
numbers-station/>jpackage --input . --name numbers-station --main-jar .\target\numbersstation-1.0-SNAPSHOT.jar --main-class name.nathanmcrae.numbersstation.MainRun --type exe --dest $HOME/temp/20250317T200941
java.io.IOException: Command [C:\Program Files (x86)\WiX Toolset v3.11\bin\candle.exe, -nologo, C:\Users\nathanm\AppData\Local\Temp\jdk.jpackage911481192111528806\config\bundle.wxf, -ext, WixUtilExtension, -arch, x64, -out, C:\Users\nathanm\AppData\Local\Temp\jdk.jpackage911481192111528806\wixobj\bundle.wixobj] in C:\Users\nathanm\AppData\Local\Temp\jdk.jpackage911481192111528806\images\win-msi.image\numbers-station exited with 1 code
# 2025-03-22
Did a clean clone and build and it worked.
jpackage --input . --name numbers-station --main-jar .\target\numbersstation-1.0-SNAPSHOT.jar --main-class name.nathanmcrae.numbersstation.MainRun --type exe --win-menu --win-per-user-install --win-shortcut --win-shortcut-prompt --win-upgrade-uuid 956c711b-01f1-46a2-9355-4a6b63ec1ec9 --icon "P:\personal_root\projects\numbers-station\icon.ico" --description "Tool to periodically upload encrypted messages to a website/blog"
---
2025-03-22T20:50:38.212-07:00 INFO name.nathanmcrae.numbersstation.Main main Executable Path: C:\Users\nathanm\AppData\Local\numbers-station\numbers-station.exe