Password cracking is the process of attempting to gain unauthorized access to a computer system or network by systematically attempting to guess the password. This is typically done through various techniques and tools that exploit vulnerabilities or weaknesses in password security. The goal of password cracking is to discover the correct password or passphrase that grants access to a protected system or account.
Password Cracking Techniques
Brute Force Attack:
In this method, an attacker systematically tries all possible combinations of passwords until the correct one is found. This is a time-consuming process, especially for complex and long passwords, but it is effective if the password is weak.
Dictionary Attack:
This method involves using a pre-compiled list of commonly used passwords, known as a dictionary, to systematically attempt to log in. It is more efficient than brute force and is effective against users who choose easily guessable passwords
Rainbow Table Attack:
Rainbow tables are precomputed tables of hash values for different passwords. Attackers use these tables to look up the hash of a password and find a corresponding plaintext password. This is a faster alternative to brute force or dictionary attacks.
Phishing:
Instead of directly attempting to crack passwords, attackers may use deceptive methods to trick users into revealing their passwords. This can involve creating fake login pages or sending fraudulent emails that mimic legitimate requests for login credentials.
Password Cracking Tools:
Password crackers can be used maliciously or legitimately to recover lost passwords. Among the password-cracking tools available are the following three:
Cain and Abel
Microsoft Windows user account credentials and Microsoft Access passwords can both be recovered with this password recovery program. Compared to similar tools, it is more user-friendly because it has a graphical user interface. The software uses dictionary lists and brute-force attack methods
Ophcrack
This password cracker uses rainbow tables and brute-force attacks to crack passwords. It runs on Windows, macOS and Linux.
john the Ripper
This program, which mostly works with macOS and Linux platforms, employs a dictionary list technique. The program is more challenging to use than programs like Cain and Abel because it uses a command prompt to crack passwords.
Protection against Hackers
- If the web site supports it, try to use special characters, such as $, #, and &. Most passwords are case-sensitive, so use a mixture of uppercase and lowercase letters, as well as numbers.
- Passwords become harder to crack with each character that you add, so longer passwords are better than shorter ones. A brute-force attack can easily defeat a password with seven or fewer characters.
- Create different passwords for different accounts and applications. That way, if one password is breached, your other
- accounts won’t be put at risk too. Do not use the same or variations of the same password for different applications.
- Use Two-factor authentication: this asks users for an additional access point, for example, a text message sent to a user’s personal mobile phone when trying to log in to their email