Custom Wordlists
While pre-made wordlists like rockyou or SecLists provide an extensive repository of potential passwords and usernames, they operate on a broad spectrum, casting a wide net in the hopes of catching the right combination. While effective in some scenarios, this approach can be inefficient and time-consuming, especially when targeting specific individuals or organizations with unique password or username patterns.
Consider the scenario where a pentester attempts to compromise the account of "Thomas Edison" at his workplace. A generic username list like xato-net-10-million-usernames-dup.txt is unlikely to yield any meaningful results. Given the potential username conventions enforced by his company, the probability of his specific username being included in such a massive dataset is minimal. These could range from a straightforward first name/last name format to more intricate combinations like last name/first three.
In such cases, the power of custom wordlists comes into play. These meticulously crafted lists, tailored to the specific target and their environment, dramatically increase brute-force attacks' efficiency and success rate. They leverage information gathered from various sources, such as social media profiles, company directories, or even leaked data, to create a focused and highly relevant set of potential passwords and usernames. This laser-sharp approach minimizes wasted effort and maximizes the chances of cracking the target account.
Username Anarchy
Even when dealing with a seemingly simple name like "Jane Smith," manual username generation can quickly become a convoluted endeavor. While the obvious combinations like jane, smith, janesmith, j.smith, or jane.s may seem adequate, they barely scratch the surface of the potential username landscape.
Human creativity knows no bounds, and usernames often become a canvas for personal expression. Jane could seamlessly weave in her middle name, birth year, or a cherished hobby, leading to variations like janemarie, smithj87, or jane_the_gardener. The allure of leetspeak, where letters are replaced with numbers or symbols, could manifest in usernames like j4n3, 5m1th, or j@n3_5m1th. Her passion for a particular book, movie, or band might inspire usernames like winteriscoming, potterheadjane, or smith_beatles_fan.
This is where Username Anarchy shines. It accounts for initials, common substitutions, and more, casting a wider net in your quest to uncover the target's username:
0xH4shDumb@htb[/htb]$ ./username-anarchy -l
Plugin name Example
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
first anna
firstlast annakey
first.last anna.key
firstlast[8] annakey
first[4]last[4] annakey
firstl annak
f.last a.key
flast akey
lfirst kanna
l.first k.anna
lastf keya
last key
last.f key.a
last.first key.anna
FLast AKey
first1 anna0,anna1,anna2
fl ak
fmlast abkey
firstmiddlelast annaboomkey
fml abk
FL AK
FirstLast AnnaKey
First.Last Anna.Key
Last KeyFirst, install ruby, and then pull the Username Anarchy git to get the script:
Next, execute it with the target's first and last names. This will generate possible username combinations.
Upon inspecting jane_smith_usernames.txt, you'll encounter a diverse array of usernames, encompassing:
Basic combinations:
janesmith,smithjane,jane.smith,j.smith, etc.Initials:
js,j.s.,s.j., etc.etc
This comprehensive list, tailored to the target's name, is valuable in a brute-force attack.
CUPP
With the username aspect addressed, the next formidable hurdle in a brute-force attack is the password. This is where CUPP (Common User Passwords Profiler) steps in, a tool designed to create highly personalized password wordlists that leverage the gathered intelligence about your target.
Let's continue our exploration with Jane Smith. We've already employed Username Anarchy to generate a list of potential usernames. Now, let's use CUPP to complement this with a targeted password list.
The efficacy of CUPP hinges on the quality and depth of the information you feed it. It's akin to a detective piecing together a suspect's profile - the more clues you have, the clearer the picture becomes. So, where can one gather this valuable intelligence for a target like Jane Smith?
Social Media: A goldmine of personal details: birthdays, pet names, favorite quotes, travel destinations, significant others, and more. Platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn can reveal much information.Company Websites: Jane's current or past employers' websites might list her name, position, and even her professional bio, offering insights into her work life.Public Records: Depending on jurisdiction and privacy laws, public records might divulge details about Jane's address, family members, property ownership, or even past legal entanglements.News Articles and Blogs: Has Jane been featured in any news articles or blog posts? These could shed light on her interests, achievements, or affiliations.
OSINT will be a goldmine of information for CUPP. Provide as much information as possible; CUPP's effectiveness hinges on the depth of your intelligence. For example, let's say you have put together this profile based on Jane Smith's Facebook postings.
Name
Jane Smith
Nickname
Janey
Birthdate
December 11, 1990
Relationship Status
In a relationship with Jim
Partner's Name
Jim (Nickname: Jimbo)
Partner's Birthdate
December 12, 1990
Pet
Spot
Company
AHI
Interests
Hackers, Pizza, Golf, Horses
Favorite Colors
Blue
CUPP will then take your inputs and create a comprehensive list of potential passwords:
Original and Capitalized:
jane,JaneReversed Strings:
enaj,enaJBirthdate Variations:
jane1994,smith2708Concatenations:
janesmith,smithjaneAppending Special Characters:
jane!,smith@Appending Numbers:
jane123,smith2024Leetspeak Substitutions:
j4n3,5m1thCombined Mutations:
Jane1994!,smith2708@
This process results in a highly personalized wordlist, significantly more likely to contain Jane's actual password than any generic, off-the-shelf dictionary could ever hope to achieve. This focused approach dramatically increases the odds of success in our password-cracking endeavors.
If you're using Pwnbox, CUPP is likely pre-installed. Otherwise, install it using:
Invoke CUPP in interactive mode, CUPP will guide you through a series of questions about your target, enter the following as prompted:
We now have a generated username.txt list and jane.txt password list, but there is one more thing we need to deal with. CUPP has generated many possible passwords for us, but Jane's company, AHI, has a rather odd password policy.
Minimum Length: 6 characters
Must Include:
At least one uppercase letter
At least one lowercase letter
At least one number
At least two special characters (from the set
!@#$%^&*)
As we did earlier, we can use grep to filter that password list to match that policy:
This command efficiently filters jane.txt to match the provided policy, from ~46000 passwords to a possible ~7900. It first ensures a minimum length of 6 characters, then checks for at least one uppercase letter, one lowercase letter, one number, and finally, at least two special characters from the specified set. The filtered results are stored in jane-filtered.txt.
Use the two generated lists in Hydra against the target to brute-force the login form. Remember to change the target info for your instance.
Once Hydra has completed the attack, log into the website using the discovered credentials and retrieve the flag.
After successfully brute-forcing, and then logging into the target, what is the full flag you find?
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