I was looking for php encoder and found a zend safeguard. I googled about safeguard and found out that there are many decoders for zend safeguard.
Zend told me that it is not possible to decode zend encoded files, but users over the internet do not agree.
I cannot seem to find a clear answer for my situation.
what do you guys think?
To put it simply, it must be decoded for you to be able to run it. At some point, the encrypted data is decrypted to PHP bytecode during normal operation, meaning it's possible for someone to capture that bytecode and store it, unencrypted.
However, it's probably impossible to retrieve the original PHP source, just like you can't get the original C++ code, comments and all, by decompiling a .exe file.
So, in the end, both sides are right, for specific meanings of "decode".
And tools like Zend Guard will never stop a determined attacker, making their value questionable.