This paper studies obfuscation techniques for Erlang programs at the source, abstract syntax tree, BEAM assembly, and BEAM bytecode levels. We focus on transformations that complicate reverse engineering, decompilation, and recompilation while remaining grounded in the actual behavior of the Erlang compiler, validator, loader, and virtual machine. The paper categorizes opcode-level dependency tricks, receive-based loop encodings, irregular control-flow constructions, mutability-oriented performance obfuscation, and self-modifying code enabled by dynamic module loading. A recurring theme is that effective obfuscation in BEAM often arises not from arbitrary corruption, but from exploiting representational gaps between high-level Erlang semantics and the lower-level execution model accepted by the toolchain and runtime.

翻译：本文研究了Erlang程序在源代码、抽象语法树、BEAM汇编和BEAM字节码层面的混淆技术。我们聚焦于那些能增加逆向工程、反编译和重编译难度的变换方法，同时确保它们基于Erlang编译器、验证器、加载器和虚拟机的实际行为。本文对操作码级依赖技巧、基于receive的循环编码、不规则控制流构造、面向可变性的性能混淆以及通过动态模块加载实现的自修改代码进行了分类论述。一个反复出现的核心观点是：BEAM中有效的混淆往往并非源于随意的破坏性操作，而是通过利用高级Erlang语义与工具链及运行时环境所接受的底层执行模型之间的表征差异来实现。