What is Password Cracking?
Jan 31, 2001 If a user tries to log on to the network after the password has expired and this option is deselected, NT will allow the user to provide the old password and then provide a new one.
Password cracking is the process of attempting to gain Unauthorized access to restricted systems using common passwords or algorithms that guess passwords. In other words, it’s an art of obtaining the correct password that gives access to a system protected by an authentication method.
- So to crack NT passwords, the username and the corresponding one way hashes (Lan Man and NT) need to be extracted from the password database. Instead of going out and writing some code to do this, simply get a copy of Jeremy Allison's PWDUMP, which goes.
- But we are now working on NT, you need to use the User-Manager to define new User and to change Passwords. And since NT allows you to run a secure system, NT offers you additional options for managing password ( since in most environments, it is only a question of time, until a password is known by unauthorized people, so methods need to be implemented to prevent passwords to become known).
- Crack vmWare ESXi username and password. Question - Solved. The job itself they said was mostly sys admin, database admin, and growing the shop. I'm wary so I talk to the current IT guy. He has been there several years and says he's only leaving because his wife wants to move closer to her family. I ask about the times he gets called in.
Password cracking employs a number of techniques to achieve its goals. The cracking process can involve either comparing stored passwords against word list or use algorithms to generate passwords that match
In this Tutorial, we will introduce you to the common password cracking techniques and the countermeasures you can implement to protect systems against such attacks.
Topics covered in this tutorial
What is password strength?
Password strength is the measure of a password’s efficiency to resist password cracking attacks. The strength of a password is determined by;
- Length: the number of characters the password contains.
- Complexity: does it use a combination of letters, numbers, and symbol?
- Unpredictability: is it something that can be guessed easily by an attacker?
Let’s now look at a practical example. We will use three passwords namely
1. password
2. password1
3. #password1$
For this example, we will use the password strength indicator of Cpanel when creating passwords. The images below show the password strengths of each of the above-listed passwords.
Note: the password used is password the strength is 1, and it’s very weak.
Admin Password Windows Vista
Note: the password used is password1 the strength is 28, and it’s still weak.
Note: The password used is #password1$ the strength is 60 and it’s strong.
The higher the strength number, better the password.
Let’s suppose that we have to store our above passwords using md5 encryption. We will use an online md5 hash generator to convert our passwords into md5 hashes.
The table below shows the password hashes| Password | MD5 Hash | Cpanel Strength Indicator |
|---|---|---|
| password | 5f4dcc3b5aa765d61d8327deb882cf99 | 1 |
| password1 | 7c6a180b36896a0a8c02787eeafb0e4c | 28 |
| #password1$ | 29e08fb7103c327d68327f23d8d9256c | 60 |
We will now use http://www.md5this.com/ to crack the above hashes. The images below show the password cracking results for the above passwords.
As you can see from the above results, we managed to crack the first and second passwords that had lower strength numbers. We didn’t manage to crack the third password which was longer, complex and unpredictable. It had a higher strength number.
Password cracking techniques
There are a number of techniques that can be used to crack passwords. We will describe the most commonly used ones below;
- Dictionary attack– This method involves the use of a wordlist to compare against user passwords.
- Brute force attack– This method is similar to the dictionary attack. Brute force attacks use algorithms that combine alpha-numeric characters and symbols to come up with passwords for the attack. For example, a password of the value “password” can also be tried as p@$$word using the brute force attack.
- Rainbow table attack– This method uses pre-computed hashes. Let’s assume that we have a database which stores passwords as md5 hashes. We can create another database that has md5 hashes of commonly used passwords. We can then compare the password hash we have against the stored hashes in the database. If a match is found, then we have the password.
- Guess– As the name suggests, this method involves guessing. Passwords such as qwerty, password, admin, etc. are commonly used or set as default passwords. If they have not been changed or if the user is careless when selecting passwords, then they can be easily compromised.
- Spidering– Most organizations use passwords that contain company information. This information can be found on company websites, social media such as facebook, twitter, etc. Spidering gathers information from these sources to come up with word lists. The word list is then used to perform dictionary and brute force attacks.
Spidering sample dictionary attack wordlist
Password cracking tool
These are software programs that are used to crack user passwords. We already looked at a similar tool in the above example on password strengths. The website www.md5this.com uses a rainbow table to crack passwords. We will now look at some of the commonly used tools
John the Ripper
John the Ripper uses the command prompt to crack passwords. This makes it suitable for advanced users who are comfortable working with commands. It uses to wordlist to crack passwords. The program is free, but the word list has to be bought. It has free alternative word lists that you can use. Visit the product website https://www.openwall.com/john/ for more information and how to use it.
Cain & Abel
Cain & Abel runs on windows. It is used to recover passwords for user accounts, recovery of Microsoft Access passwords; networking sniffing, etc. Unlike John the Ripper, Cain & Abel uses a graphic user interface. It is very common among newbies and script kiddies because of its simplicity of use. Visit the product website https://www.softpedia.com/get/Security/Decrypting-Decoding/Cain-and-Abel.shtml for more information and how to use it.
Ophcrack
Ophcrack is a cross-platform Windows password cracker that uses rainbow tables to crack passwords. It runs on Windows, Linux and Mac OS. It also has a module for brute force attacks among other features. Visit the product website https://ophcrack.sourceforge.io/ for more information and how to use it.
Password Cracking Counter Measures
- An organization can use the following methods to reduce the chances of the passwords been cracked
- Avoid short and easily predicable passwords
- Avoid using passwords with predictable patterns such as 11552266.
- Passwords stored in the database must always be encrypted. For md5 encryptions, its better to salt the password hashes before storing them. Salting involves adding some word to the provided password before creating the hash.
- Most registration systems have password strength indicators, organizations must adopt policies that favor high password strength numbers.
Hacking Activity: Hack Now!
In this practical scenario, we are going to crack Windows account with a simple password. Windows uses NTLM hashes to encrypt passwords. We will use the NTLM cracker tool in Cain and Abel to do that.
Cain and Abel cracker can be used to crack passwords using;
- Dictionary attack
- Brute force
- Cryptanalysis
We will use the dictionary attack in this example. You will need to download the dictionary attack wordlist here 10k-Most-Common.zip
For this demonstration, we have created an account called Accounts with the password qwerty on Windows 7.
Password cracking steps
- Open Cain and Abel, you will get the following main screen
- Make sure the cracker tab is selected as shown above
- Click on the Add button on the toolbar.
- The following dialog window will appear
- The local user accounts will be displayed as follows. Note the results shown will be of the user accounts on your local machine.
- Right click on the account you want to crack. For this tutorial, we will use Accounts as the user account.
- The following screen will appear
- Right click on the dictionary section and select Add to list menu as shown above
- Browse to the 10k most common.txt file that you just downloaded
- Click on start button
- If the user used a simple password like qwerty, then you should be able to get the following results.
- Note: the time taken to crack the password depends on the password strength, complexity and processing power of your machine.
- If the password is not cracked using a dictionary attack, you can try brute force or cryptanalysis attacks.
Summary
- Password cracking is the art of recovering stored or transmitted passwords.
- Password strength is determined by the length, complexity, and unpredictability of a password value.
- Common password techniques include dictionary attacks, brute force, rainbow tables, spidering and cracking.
- Password cracking tools simplify the process of cracking passwords.
If you have ever come across a situation where you have to crack your own system it clearly indicates that your system is highly compromised or damaged. That situation may arise due to forgetting your admin or login password on using the same account after a long period of time. But there is no need to panic at all, as these predicaments are common with us all. Now if you wish to crack Windows 10 password, you can either go to your nearest service center, or you can try to solve the issue all by yourself. Going to the service center might prove to be hectic and costly if your device is in out of warranty. Thus to try to resolve the issue all by yourself is the best plausible option to heed in these kinds of cases.
Few simple procedures are demonstrated below which basically involve the implementation of certain third party tools. Carry on with your reading and you will know them in detail below.
- Method #2: Crack Windows 10 Password with PassCue (Recommend!)
Method #1: Crack Windows 10 Password with Cain & Abel
Cain & Abel is one of the oldest yet the most popular windows password recovery tool which is still used by many users till date. It generally utilizes hash tag algorithms in addition to brute force attack to recover the lost password. Follow the steps below to operate the tool properly:
Step 1. Firstly, download Cain & Abel program file from an accessible computer and burn the ISO into an empty flash drive.
Step 2. Now; insert the loaded flash drive into the locked computer and wait for a while until the program is loaded.
Step 3. Press certain keys from your keyboard as per your computer brand to enter your 'BIOS' menu. Select the drive in which the program file is loaded.
Step 4. Once the file is loaded, all the user accounts of the computer be it local or admin will be displayed on the interface screen of the software. You have to open the boot key option to navigate the drive where you have installed your operating system.
Step 5. Now; simply right-click on the locked account name and browse to the following location: Brute-force attack > NTML hashes.
The recovery process may take from few minutes to several hours and once done, you can copy paste the password to somewhere safe and use it later to access your computer.
CONS:
1) It is an outdated program and might not be compatible at times with your system.
2) It does not work fine with Windows 8/10 with 64-bit.
3) Not support UEFI-based computer.
Method #2: Crack Windows 10 with PassCue
There are many essential password recovery or removal tools available on the internet market, but none can match the magnificence of PassCue for Windows. It is one of the finest and powerful password removal tools which can easily bypass the login screen without re-installing the Windows actually. All the Windows passwords are stored in a SAM file with a hash format. PassCue for Windows program could simply manipulate certain SAM keys and disables the password protection feature and the user gets clean access to the previously locked account. To know the tool in detail, go through the features mentioned below:
Crack Nt4 Admin Password Unlocker
Step 1 Download and Install It on Another Working Computer
Download the necessary setup ISO file to any of your functional computer and install it accepting all the step instructions. Launch the program with admin privileges, and plug in your USB stick or CD/DVD into your computer.
Step 2 Create a Bootable Password Reset Disk
Burn the ISO files by clicking 'Burn USB' or 'Burn CD/DVD' options depending upon the disk type you have inserted.
Step 3 Set Your Locked PC Boot from USB Drive
Eject the loaded password reset disk and plug it again into the locked computer, alter the boot preference order if need be and then boot from it. Reboot your locked PC and repeatedly press the keys like F2 or F11 to enter the BIOS settings. Choose your USB or DVD disk as the priority device in the 'Device Priority' list.
Step 4 Start to Crack Windows 10 Password
Reboot your locked PC, then the PassCue for Windows will be loaded with displaying all systems and users in it, once all preferences are chosen, simply click 'Reset Password' to reset your selected user to blank, Then click 'Reboot' button to boot your PC.
The system will be rebooted but there will no password inquiry at all.
For Windows 7 users: 4 Ways to bypass Windows Login Password without Losing Data
Method #2: Crack Windows 10 Password with Freeware NTPasswd
NTPasswd is a wonderful password removing utility which can easily crack Windows 10 password and astonishingly without overwriting your old password and you don't have to re-install the operating system. It disables the password feature by temporarily removing the password on any 32-bit edition of Windows 7 not Windows 10. However, since it works so differently than PassCue for Windows, but it still requires a few post-cracking steps to be a real password reset solution. This amazing program is too difficult for computer novice because you need to type multi-line commands. Read carefully the steps for better tool's usage:
Step 1. Download the setup file from any operational computer and start to burn the ISO file into a bootable USB or DVD.
Step 2. Plug in the bootable disk studded with the program file into the locked PC and change the BIOS utility settings to boot from the inserted device. Then you must ensure the USB device is set as the primary boot device in the BIOS and press 'Enter' button on the first flash screen.
Step 4. The Ntpassword tool will exhibit another flash screen. Select to login as a Guest user or with your standard user account. Open a Command Prompt by using key: Win key+R -> cmd, then type these commands: On User Edit Menu, type 1 and press Enter to select 'Clear (blank) user password'.
See how it works:
Next step, type q to quit the NTPasswd tool and type y to save your changes. Now, reboot your computer and you will find that the password was bypassed completely! Then you would use your computer like before as if there is no any password set up. What’s more, remember to set up a new password for your account and write them down.
CONS:
1) It is a very complicated process
2) It doesn't work with 64-bit Windows version computers.
Admin Password Mac
3) Does not work with Windows 8/ 10 versions.
Crack Nt4 Admin Password Windows 7
4) could not get it to work from a USB drive
Final Words:
Bypassing passwords for your locked out admin accounts are not that difficult to pull off, if you know what to rely upon for the specified job. Now all the aforementioned methods in the beginning end up with some downsides which eliminates the possibility of choosing them for a secured result, so we are all left with PassCue to implement which at its best to crack Windows 10 password and offers you the clean access to your user account in your Windows 10 Laptop.