Search results for password hash cracking | Breaking Cybersecurity News | The Hacker News

While passwords remain the first line of defense for protecting user accounts against unauthorized access, the methods for creating strong passwords and protecting them are continually evolving. For example, NIST password recommendations are now prioritizing password length over complexity. Hashing, however, remains a non-negotiable. Even long secure passphrases should be hashed to prevent them from being completely exposed in the event of a data breach – and never stored in plaintext. This article examines how today's cyber attackers attempt to crack hashed passwords, explores common hashing algorithms and their limitations, and discusses measures you can take to protect your hashed passwords, regardless of which algorithm you are using. Modern password cracking techniques Malicious actors have an array of tools and methods at their disposal for cracking hashed passwords. Some of the more widely used methods include brute force attacks, password dictionary attacks, hybrid attacks...

Over the past several months, it has become clear that the Internet and our Privacy have been fundamentally compromised. A Private search engine DuckDuckGo claims that when you click on one of their search results, they do not send personally identifiable information along with your request to the third party. Like Google dorks (advance search patterns), there are thousands of similar, but technically more useful search hacks are also available in DuckDuckGo called DuckDuckGoodies . Today I am going to share about Handy " Cryptography " using DuckDuckGo search engine . Whether you are a Hacker, Cracker or a Researcher, you need to face a number of hash strings in your day to day life. Hashing is a one way encryption of a plain text or a file, generally used to secure passwords or to check the integrity of the file. There is a certain set of hashing algorithms, e.g.md5, sha1, sha-512 etc. A hash function generates the exact output if executed n numbe...

As security professionals, it's easy to get caught up in a race to counter the latest advanced adversary techniques. Yet the most impactful attacks often aren't from cutting-edge exploits, but from cracked credentials and compromised accounts . Despite widespread awareness of this threat vector, Picus Security's Blue Report 2025 shows that organizations continue to struggle with preventing password cracking attacks and detecting the malicious use of compromised accounts . With the first half of 2025 behind us, compromised valid accounts remain the most underprevented attack vector , highlighting the urgent need for a proactive approach focused on the threats that are evading organizations' defenses. A Wake-Up Call: The Alarming Rise in Password Cracking Success The Picus Blue Report is an annual research publication that analyzes how well organizations are preventing and detecting real-world cyber threats. Unlike traditional reports that focus solely on threat t...

Passwords are rarely appreciated until a security breach occurs; suffice to say, the importance of a strong password becomes clear only when faced with the consequences of a weak one. However, most end users are unaware of just how vulnerable their passwords are to the most common password-cracking methods. The following are the three common techniques for cracking passwords and how to defend against them. Brute force attack Brute force attacks are straightforward yet highly effective techniques for cracking passwords. These attacks involve malicious actors using automated tools to systematically try every possible password combination through repeated login attempts. While such tools have existed 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 range of tactics—from simple brute force attacks that test ev...

Oracle suffered with serious vulnerability in the authentication protocol used by some Oracle databases. This Flaw enable a remote attacker to brute-force a token provided by the server prior to authentication and determine a user's password. A researcher - Esteban Martinez Fayo, a researcher with AppSec tomorrow will demonstrate a proof-of-concept attack. Martinez Fayo and his team first reported the bugs to Oracle in May 2010. Oracle fixed it in mid-2011 via the 11.2.0.3 patch set, issuing a new version of the protocol. " But they never fixed the current version, so the current 11.1 and 11.2 versions are still vulnerable ," Martinez Fayo says, and Oracle has no plans to fix the flaws for version 11.1. The first step in the authentication process when a client contacts the database server is for the server to send a session key back to the client, along with a salt. The vulnerability enables an attacker to link a specific session key with a specific password hash. Th...

Modern password policies are comprised of many different elements that contribute to its effectiveness. One of the components of an effective current password policy makes use of what is known as a  custom dictionary  that filters out certain words that are not allowed as passwords in the environment.  Using custom dictionaries, organizations can significantly improve their cybersecurity posture and filter out obvious passwords that provide poor security for user accounts. When using password dictionaries in your password policy, there are many different approaches to consider. First, let's consider crafting a custom dictionary for your password policy, including general guidance on how these are created, configured, and how you can easily use custom dictionaries in an active directory environment. Why customize your dictionary?  Custom dictionaries are born from the need to "think as a hacker thinks." Compromised credentials are one of the leading causes of mal...

John the Ripper 1.7.7 new version Released ! "John the Ripper is a fast password cracker, currently available for many flavors of Unix, Windows, DOS, BeOS, and OpenVMS. Its primary purpose is to detect weak Unix passwords. It supports several crypt(3) password hash types commonly found on Unix systems, as well as Windows LM hashes." This is the change log for JtR version 1.7.7: Added Intel AVX and AMD XOP instruction sets support for bitslice DES (with C compiler intrinsics). New make targets: linux-x86-64-avx, linux-x86-64-xop, linux-x86-avx, and linux-x86-xop (these require recent versions of GCC and GNU binutils). A "dummy" "format" is now supported (plaintext passwords encoded in hexadecimal and prefixed with "$dummy$") – for faster testing and tuning of custom wordlists, rule sets, .chr files, and external modes on already known or artificial passwords, as well as for testing of future and modified versions of John itself. Apache "$apr1$" MD5-based password hashes are now ...

Hash Code Cracker V 1.2 Released ~ Password Cracking from BreakTheSecurity BreakTheSecurity is proud to release the Hash Code Cracker Version 1.2. Our latest release supports Online Cracking function. Description: This password cracker is developed for PenTesters and Ethical hackers. Please Use this software for legal purposes(Testing the Password Strength). Features: This software will crack the MD5, SHA1,NTLM(Windows Password) hash codes. No need to install. Supports All platforms(windows XP/7,Linux,..). V1.2 Changelog : Included Online cracking Support Minimum Requirements: Java Runtime Environment: JRE 1.6 should be installed.(you can get it from oracle.com) How to Run the Application? Download the .zip file and extract. Extract the zip file. Open the Terminal or command prompt. Navigate to the path of Extracted zip file (i mean HashCodeCracker Folder) in Terminal/CMD. Type this command "java -jar HashCodeCracker.jar". Now the applica...

Password resets can be frustrating for end users. Nobody likes being interrupted by the 'time to change your password' notification – and they like it even less when the new passwords they create are rejected by their organization's password policy. IT teams share the pain, with resetting passwords via service desk tickets and support calls being an everyday burden. Despite this, it's commonly accepted that all passwords should expire after a set period of time.  Why is this the case? Do you need password expiries at all? Explore the reason expiries exist and why setting passwords to 'never expire' might save some headaches, but not be the best idea for cybersecurity.  Why do we have password expiries? The traditional 90-day password reset policy stems from the need to protect against brute-force attacks . Organizations typically store passwords as hashes, which are scrambled versions of the actual passwords created using cryptographic hash functions (CHFs). When a user en...

John The Ripper 1.7.7 Jumbo 5 - Latest Release Download New version of John The Ripper has been released, John the Ripper is a free password cracking software tool. Initially developed for the UNIX operating system, it currently runs on fifteen different platforms (11 architecture-specific flavors of Unix, DOS, Win32, BeOS, and OpenVMS). It is one of the most popular password testing/breaking programs as it combines a number of password crackers into one package, autodetects password hash types, and includes a customizable cracker. It can be run against various encrypted password formats including several crypt password hash types most commonly found on various UNIX flavors. John the Ripper Pro currently supports the following password hash types (and more are planned): Traditional DES-based Unix crypt – most commercial Unix systems (Solaris, AIX, …), Mac OS X 10.2, ancient Linux and *BSD "bigcrypt" – HP-UX, Tru64 / Digital Unix / OSF/1 BSDI-style extended DES-based crypt – BSD...

Looking for how to hack WiFi password OR WiFi hacking software? Well, a security researcher has revealed a new WiFi hacking technique that makes it easier for hackers to crack WiFi passwords of most modern routers. Discovered by the lead developer of the popular password-cracking tool Hashcat, Jens 'Atom' Steube, the new WiFi hack works explicitly against WPA/WPA2 wireless network protocols with Pairwise Master Key Identifier (PMKID)-based roaming features enabled. The attack to compromise the WPA/WPA2 enabled WiFi networks was accidentally discovered by Steube while he was analyzing the newly-launched WPA3 security standard . This new WiFi hacking method could potentially allow attackers to recover the Pre-shared Key (PSK) login passwords, allowing them to hack into your Wi-Fi network and eavesdrop on the Internet communications. How to Hack WiFi Password Using PMKID According to the researcher, the previously known WiFi hacking methods require attackers to wai...

Active Directory (AD) is a powerful authentication and directory service used by organizations worldwide. With this ubiquity and power comes the potential for abuse. Insider threats offer some of the most potentials for destruction. Many internal users have over-provisioned access and visibility into the internal network. Insiders' level of access and trust in a network leads to unique vulnerabilities. Network security often focuses on keeping a threat actor out, not on existing users' security and potential vulnerabilities. Staying on top of potential threats means protecting against inside and outside threats. Active Directory Vulnerabilities From the outside, a properly configured AD domain offers a secure authentication and authorization solution. But with complex social engineering and phishing email attacks, an existing AD user can become compromised. Once inside, threat actors have many options to attack Active Directory. Insecure Devices With "Bring Your Own ...

HashCodeCracker v1.2 Video Tutorials Available Hash Code Cracker V 1.2 was Released last week by BreakTheSecurity. This software will crack the MD5, SHA1,NTLM(Windows Password) hash codes. No need to install. Supports All platforms(windows XP/7,Linux,..). How to Run Hash Code Cracker Jar using Command Prompt~Password Cracking How to start Hash Code Cracker Jar with double Click~Password Cracking How to Crack the Password using Online Cracker Hash Code Cracker v1.2? Download  here  or from  here

Findmyhash - Find Cracked Hashes Online findmyhash is a Python script which has been developed to find different types of password hashes using multiple cracking online services. In case that it does not find a favourable "cracked" hash, it will also present you with relevant Google search results. This is open source script can mostly serve as a start up point for cracking any hash. It supports a lot many online hash cracking services. Cracking services supported by findmyhash: Schwett.com Netmd5crack.com MD5-Cracker.tk tools.BenRamsey.com md5.Gromweb.com md5.HashCracking.com victorov.su md5.thekaine.de tmto.org md5-db.de md5.my-addr.com md5pass.info md5decryption.com md5crack.com md5online.net md5-decrypter.com authsecu.com hashcrack.com objectif-securite.ch c0llision.net md5.rednoize.com cmd5.org cacin.net ibeast.com password-decrypt.com bigtrapeze.com hashchecker.com md5hashcracker.appspot.com passcracking.com askcheck.com cracker.fox21.at cra...

After the iPhone encryption battle between Apple and the FBI , Apple was inspired to work toward making an unhackable future iPhones by implementing stronger security measures even the company can't hack. Even at that point the company hired one of the key developers of Signal — one of the world's most secure, encrypted messaging apps — its core security team to achieve this goal. But it seems like Apple has taken something of a backward step. Apple deliberately weakens Backup Encryption For iOS 10 With the latest update of its iPhone operating system, it seems the company might have made a big blunder that directly affects its users' security and privacy. Apple has downgraded the hashing algorithm for iOS 10 from "PBKDF2 SHA-1 with 10,000 iterations" to "plain SHA256 with a single iteration," potentially allowing attackers to brute-force the password via a standard desktop computer processor. PBKDF2 stands for Password-Based Key Deri...

After conducting over 10,000 automated internal network penetration tests last year, vPenTest has uncovered a troubling reality that many businesses still have critical security gaps that attackers can easily exploit. Organizations often assume that firewalls, endpoint protection, and SIEMs are enough to keep them secure. But how effective are these defenses when put to the test? That's where vPenTest , Vonahi Security's automated network pentesting platform, comes in. Designed to simulate real-world attack scenarios, vPenTest helps organizations find exploitable vulnerabilities before cybercriminals can. These aren't complex, zero-day exploits. They're misconfigurations, weak passwords, and unpatched vulnerabilities that attackers routinely exploit to gain access, move laterally, and escalate privileges within networks. Here's how these risks break down: 50% stem from misconfigurations – Default settings, weak access controls, and overlooked security policies. 30% are due to m...