Password Cracking: Top Techniques Used by Hackers | Avast

If a hacker discovers your password, they can steal your identity, steal all your other passwords, and lock you out of all your accounts. they can also set up phishing attacks to trick you into handing over more sensitive data, install spyware on your devices, or sell your data to data brokers.

The best way to protect yourself against cybercriminals and cybercrimes like password theft is with a healthy mix of common sense and modern security solutions.

how can i prevent my password from being hacked?

The first step in preventing your password from being hacked is to create long, unique passwords for all of your accounts. We know it’s very convenient to use your dog’s birthday for all your passwords, but this only makes it more convenient for hackers.

It’s also easy to let your browser save all your passwords for you. But if someone takes control of your computer, either remotely or in person, they can also take control of your passwords. that’s one of the many reasons why you should be careful about saving passwords in your browser, and why a password manager is generally the most secure way to do it.

As technology has advanced, guessing passwords has become easier for hackers. While some of the best password managers can hold their own against password cracking tools, knowing common password cracking techniques is a great way to turn the odds in your favor.

how do you crack instagram passwords?

Instagram and other social media passwords are extremely difficult to crack, at least in theory. That’s because platforms use hashing algorithms to convert their users’ passwords into a unique string of random characters. but while hashed passwords are difficult to crack, plain text passwords remain a weak point. If your Instagram account has been hacked, it is highly unlikely that the hash algorithm was reverse engineered. instead, your plaintext password was likely cracked through a brute force or dictionary attack, or may have been compromised in a data breach from a different website. That’s why it’s so important not to reuse identical or similar passwords on multiple platforms.

what is a hash algorithm?

A hash algorithm is a one-way encryption that converts a plaintext password into a string of letters, numbers, and special characters. it is virtually impossible to reverse a hash algorithm, but hackers can find the original password with the help of password cracking software.

As hackers learn to crack hash algorithms, newer and stronger hashes are developed. Some popular, though now deprecated, password hashing algorithms include MD5 (Message Digest Algorithm 5) and SHA (Secure Hashing Algorithm). one of the strongest password hashing algorithms today is bcrypt.

common password hacking techniques

The first step in cracking passwords is to steal the encrypted versions, often by cracking a system or network that contains the passwords. Hackers can attack vulnerabilities in a company’s software through exploits and other hacking methods to obtain internal passwords.

From there, it’s just a matter of choosing the right password cracking techniques and tools. people are not usually targets of hacking; the goal is to cast a wide net and capture as many passwords as possible.

New password attack methods are being developed every day. Fortunately for hackers, human password habits have not developed at the same time. many classic rule-based programs and algorithms are still effective at predicting people’s password choices.

Sometimes all a hacker has to do is wait for a data breach to leak millions of passwords and private details. Hackers often share and trade sensitive data they find, so it pays to have privacy software like Avast ViolationGuard that helps prevent companies from selling your personal information, protects you from social media snoopers, and scans the web in case your sensitive details become available.

These are some of the most common password hacking techniques:

brute force attack

A brute force attack is when hackers use computer programs to crack a password through countless cycles of trial and error. a reverse brute force attack attempts to crack a username through the same method. brute force attacks are simple but effective.

Modern computers can crack an eight-character alphanumeric password or ID in just a few hours. There are many freely available brute force tools on the web that allow almost infinite guessing of a target’s login credentials, such as the popular and notorious brutus password cracker.

using an obscure word won’t help: a hacker can track down every dictionary in the known universe in a matter of seconds.

The worst passwords are sequential letters and numbers, common words and phrases, and publicly available or easy-to-guess information about you. these simple passwords are incredibly easy to crack via brute force, and could sooner or later end up in a data breach.

Hackers collect cracked usernames and passwords into a hit list for attacks on other networks and systems using a technique called credential recycling. the cycle of hacker violence goes round and round, and your private data is at the center.

Brute force attacks are especially effective against easy-to-guess passwords

dictionary attack

A dictionary attack is a type of brute force attack that reduces the scope of the attack with the help of an electronic dictionary or a list of words. dictionary attacks target passwords that use word combinations, spelling variations, words in other languages, or obscure words that are too slippery for a normal brute force attack.

Because a dictionary attack uses a set list of real words, passwords that have random special characters are much more unpredictable and therefore more secure against these attacks. despite this, many people use regular words as a password because it is easier to remember.

using an obscure word won’t help: a hacker can track down every dictionary in the known universe in a matter of seconds.

mask attack

A masking attack reduces the workload of a brute force attack by including part of the password that a hacker already knows in the attack. if a hacker knows that his password is 10 characters long, for example, he can filter the attack for passwords of just that length.

masking attacks can filter by specific words, numbers within a certain range, special characters that the user prefers, or any other password feature that the hacker relies on. if any of your data is leaked, it makes you more vulnerable to a outright breach.

social engineering

Social engineering is a technique where criminals manipulate people into providing compromising information. In the context of hacking, social engineering a password is when hackers trick someone into divulging their password details, for example by posing as tech support.

It is often easier to gain someone’s trust than it is to gain access to their computer, especially if that person is not tech savvy.

Cybercriminals can get your passwords through tech support scams or other grifts.

Social engineering takes many forms, especially in the age of social media. Have you ever come across a quirky quiz on social media that asks you to enter your first pet and street to create a superhero name? A hacker may be trying to social engineer the answers to your password security questions.

spider

spidering is when hackers crawl a company’s social media accounts, marketing campaigns, or other corporate material to compile a list of words for a dictionary or brute force attack. Spidering can turn into social engineering when hackers infiltrate companies looking for keyword-filled physical manuals and training manuals.

By studying a company’s product, a hacker can obtain corporate jargon, jargon, slogans, and other language to compile into a list of words to crack. company default passwords are usually associated with a brand identity and often remain unchanged.

employees can choose passwords related to their work as it is easier to remember. With larger companies, tracing is especially effective as there is so much material to sift through. there’s a good chance that one or two passwords will slip through the cracks and land directly on a hacker’s web.

shoulder surfing

shoulder surfing is a social engineering technique to spy over someone’s shoulder as they enter login details. shoulder surfing is a common way to discover ATM pins, so most people are wary of their surroundings when withdrawing money.

But hackers can also browse your email for password cracking information, or observe your keystrokes while playing at an Internet cafe.

Shoulder surfers try to steal your passwords by spying on you.

cracking offline

Offline decryption is when hackers transfer hashed passwords offline to decrypt them more securely and efficiently. online attacks are vulnerable to discovery, can trigger a crash after too many attempts, and are hampered by network speeds. With offline cracking,a hacker is invisible, can attempt infinite number of logins, and is limited only by the power of your own computer.

hashed passwords can be taken directly from a database using tried and true hacker techniques such as sql injection. if a hacker gains administrator privileges, it’s game over for all passwords on the administrator’s system. learning how to password protect files and folders can save administrators from a disastrous password breach.

password guessing

When all else fails, cybercriminals can collaborate as a collective to effectively guess passwords. a hacker hive mind is far superior to the memory powers of a single human being.

In today’s global network, it only takes a few clicks and a bit of knowledge to get details about any internet user. And with modern password cracking tools and technology at our fingertips, it’s only a matter of time before a weak password is cracked by a patient password guesser.

tools to crack passwords

Along with a host of computer techniques and programs, hackers can use powerful password tools to seize raw user data for decryption purposes. any identifying information is valuable to a hacker.

A cunning cybercriminal can put the pieces together like a puzzle and then start to crack it. hacker communities share encrypted passwords, user profiles, credit card numbers, and other lucrative material on the dark web. a dark web scan can show you if your information is available.

If your credentials leak in a data breach, they may end up on the dark web.

network analyzers

A network analyzer can inspect and analyze network traffic, including network packets that contain valuable user data. malware can install an analyzer to spy on data traveling over a network, or someone with physical access to a network switch can connect a network analyzer to it.

Network analyzers are a modern and dangerous password hacking tool as they are not based on exploits or security flaws in a network. after a network analyzer detects the packets, a packet capture tool can steal the internal password payload.

packet capture

A packet capture tool can act as a sniffer for data packets moving through a network. One part of a packet is the source and destination, while the other part is the actual data it carries, such as passwords.

By “snooping” on packages and recording the information they contain, hackers can create profiles of potential victims and, over time, amass a large amount of data to crack passwords. they will sell this information to the highest bidder, trade it among themselves, or just give it away for free in massive data leaks.

Since so much data is collected by tech companies and other third parties, password crackers can pull your private data out of thin air. your best bet is rival technology that can fight back and keep your data out of the hands of hackers, like a secure browser with anti-tracking technology.

protect your most sensitive data with avast violationguard

If a website you frequent is hacked, it doesn’t matter how careful you were with your passwords and other private details. Big tech, data brokers, and other third parties collect your personal information, while hackers wait, looking for any opportunity to strike.

avast violator can stop companies from selling your data, monitor your passwords to keep them safe, and alert you in the event of a breach. keep your data safe: get avast security breach today and put your personal information behind a private security shield.