Passwords are rarely evaluated until a security breach occurs. It’s enough to say that the importance of a strong password will only become clear in the face of a weak password. However, most end users don’t know how vulnerable passwords are to the most common password cracking methods. Below are three common techniques for cracking passwords and how to protect them.
Brute Force Attack
Brute-force attacks are easy and very effective methods for cracking passwords. These attacks involve malicious actors using automated tools and systematically experiment with any possible password combinations through repeated login attempts. Although these tools have been around for years, the advent of affordable computing power and storage has made them even more efficient today, especially when weak passwords are used.
How it works
When it comes to brute force attacks, malicious actors employ a variety of tactics, ranging from simple brute force attacks that test any possible password combinations to more nuanced approaches such as hybrid and reverse brute force attacks. Masu. Each method has a clear strategy behind it, but the motivation behind a brute force attack is the same. Obtaining unauthorized access to protected data or resources.
Popular automated tools for carrying out brute force attacks include:
John the Ripper: Multi-platform password cracker l0phtcrack, which supports 15 different operating systems and hundreds of hashs and cipher types: highly optimized over 300 hashs that divide window passwords using rainbow tables, dictionaries and multiprocessor algorithms 5 unique attack modes of the hash algorithm
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In August 2021, US mobile operator T-Mobile fell victim to a data breaches that began with a brute force attack. Security compromises have exposed over 37 million customer records, including sensitive data such as Social Security numbers, driver’s license information and other personally identifiable data.
Defense measures
Users need to choose strong, complex passwords and multifactor authentication (MFA) to protect against brute force attacks. Administrators must implement account lockout policies and continuously audit Windows environments for weak and compromised passwords. Tools like Specops Password Auditor can automate these processes in a vast IT environment.
Dictionary Attack
In a password dictionary attack, cyberattackers attempt to gain access using a list of common passwords or words in the dictionary. This predefined list of words usually contain the most frequently used words, phrases, and simple combinations (i.e. “admin123”). Password dictionary attacks highlight the importance of complex and unique passwords, as these attack types are particularly effective against weak or easily guessable passwords.
How it works
The process begins by compiling a data breach, a general password list, or a list of potential passwords from a published resource. Using automated tools, malicious actors perform dictionary attacks and systematically test each password against a target account or system. If a match is found, the hacker can gain access and perform subsequent attacks or moves.
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The malicious actor used a password dictionary to crack passwords that have been password-hashed in several high-profile security incidents, such as the 2013 Yahoo Data Breach and the 2012 LinkedIn data breaches. This allowed us to steal account information for billions of users.
Defense measures
When creating or resetting a password, users should use combinations of letters, numbers and special characters and avoid using common words and easily guessable phrases. Administrators can implement password complexity requirements in their policies to perform these duties across their organization.
Rainbow Table Attack
Rainbow Table Attacks use a special table (i.e. “Rainbow Table) that consists of pre-computed strings or commonly used passwords and corresponding hashs to crack password hash in the database. I will.
How it works
Rainbow Tables attack work by exploiting a chain of hashing and reduction operations to efficiently break hashed passwords. Potential passwords are first hashed and stored along with the plaintext counterpart of the rainbow table, then processed with a reduction function that maps them to the new values, resulting in a chain of hashings. This process is repeated several times to build a rainbow table. Once a hacker gets the hash list, it can reverse each hash value in the rainbow table. Once a match is identified, the corresponding plaintext password is published.
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Salting (how to add random characters to your password before hashing) reduced the effectiveness of rainbow table attacks, but many hashes remain unsalted. Furthermore, advances in GPUs and affordable hardware eliminate the former storage limits associated with rainbow tables. As a result, these attacks will continue to be tactics that may be popular cyberattacks in the present and future.
Defense measures
As mentioned earlier, salted hashing significantly reduced the effectiveness of the pre-computed table. Therefore, organizations need to implement strong hash algorithms (bcrypt, scrypt, etc.) in their password processes. Administrators should also periodically update and rotate passwords to reduce the likelihood of matching/hits in the rainbow table dictionary.
In short, passwords are not perfect, but complex and long enough passphrases continue to be the crucial first line of defense against advanced password cracking techniques. Tools such as Specops policies provide an additional layer of protection by continuously scanning Active Directory against databases of over 4 billion passwords. Please contact us for today’s free demo.
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