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Tuesday 16 August 2011

Hack Windows, Mac and Linux User Passwords






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Password cracking  seems like a difficult task but these techniques
make it as simple.  We’ll show you some software which cracks windows,
mac, and linux user account passwords in a just a few minutes.   The
programs basically do all the hard work for you as noted in this tutorial.


Breaking into a computer is an illegal activity but it does help to
know how to re-access your own equipment.  So, this post is for
informational and ethical purposes only! This how-to covers three OS we
use and the methods to crack the log-in passwords.


Ophcrack_screenshot


Windows


For Windows OS, Ophcrack
is the tool of choice. It is a free Windows Password cracker based on
Rainbow Tables. It has a GUI which makes it easier to run. The software
can decipher passwords up to 14 characters in length in a quick 10
seconds.


To use Ophcrack one needs to download the Ophcrack ISO and burn it to
a CD (or load it via a USB drive). Run the CD by loading it in the tray
and restarting the computer with the power switch. Switch to the BIOS
options and set the computer to boot from the CD Drive. The computer
boots up and reads the Ophcrack CD which then proceeds to break the
password. Use this password to log into the machine.


Ophcrack is a multi-platform software and so can be used for Mac and Linux too.


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Mac OS X


Apart from Ophcrack, another simple method involves using the Mac OS X
installation CD (for v10.4). Insert and reboot to display UTILITIES.
Choose RESET PASSWORD to get a new one. Login using this password. To
reset the password in Mac OS X 10.5, reboot the computer and press
COMMAND + S.


At the prompt type in:


sck -fy

mount -uw /

launchctl load /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.DirectoryServices.plist

dscl . -passwd /Users/UserName newpassword


Login with the new reset password.


Linux


Power on the computer, press the ESC key and on the boot loader
(GRUB) screen select the ‘Recovery Mode’. Press the ‘B’ Key to
enter the single user mode. At the default prompt, type in ‘passwd’
and key in your new password. For access to a single account on the
system type ‘passwd username’ replacing ‘username’ with the
login name for the account you would reset the password for.


A lesson in cracking is also a lesson in security. Joe Tech’s article advocates the use of encryption (Blowfish or AES-128) as a failsafe against password breach.