ritheachengkh

Bandit Level 1 → Level 2

Level Goal

The password for the next level is stored in a file called - located in the home directory

Commands you may need to solve this level

ls , cd , cat , file , du , find

Helpful Reading Material

Google Search for “dashed filename”
Advanced Bash-scripting Guide - Chapter 3 - Special Characters

🔑 Solution

⌨️helpful shortcut:

Ctrl + C    Copy
Ctrl + V    Paste
Ctrl + Shift + C    Copy on Terminal
Ctrl + Shift + V    Paste on Terminal

ssh bandit1@bandit.labs.overthewire.org -p 2220

Then, enter the password (flag) you captured from the previous challenge to log in.

Once you’re logged in, you can confirm your current user by typing the command whoami. The result should display: bandit1.

Next, you can use the clear command to clean up your terminal screen. Then, type pwd to print your current working directory. Use ls to list all the files — you should see a file named -. To view its contents, use the command:

cat <-

The file is named -, which can confuse the terminal because - is usually interpreted as an option flag. < – this is input redirection in the shell. It tells the shell: “Take input for this command from the file that follows.”

📝 Alternative Way to View a File Named -

cat ./-
or
cat -- -

./- specifies the exact path to the file, avoiding confusion with options or stdin.

– is a common Unix/Linux convention used to prevent commands from misinterpreting filenames that start with dashes.

🎉 Nice job — you found the flag! Don’t forget to save it for the next challenge.