What Hash Format Are Modern Windows Login Passwords Stored In?

Passwords are a very important aspect of everything you such as computers, websites, and even Netflix that help protect your account from unauthorized use and to prevent hackers from stealing any of your personal information.

Now when you make a password for any device such as Windows, Android, macOS, or any website you see the password as clear text but once you submit the password it becomes encrypted in the backend server of whichever service you sent your password to.

The reason for this is in case a server is hacked and the hackers managed to dump the database the passwords are secure in a hash format that makes it hard for hackers to crack and takes a long time just to be able to crack one password let alone many.

Check What Is The Best Operating System Between Windows And Mac For Programming.

What Hash Format Does Windows Use For Stored Passwords

When you are using a Windows operating system or Windows tablet the password will be stored in a Security Account Manager (SAM) format which uses the encryption NT Hash System.

When your passwords are stored in the passwords files inside windows it will use an NT Hash system which replaced the older algorithms to encrypt such as LM (Lan Manager) and NTLM (NTLan Manager).

The reason modern windows use the NT Hash system algorithm is that the other 2 older algorithms we mentioned were weaker encryption due to how they split the password into two blocks of 7 bytes which left them open to be brute forced a lot easier than the latest modern NT Hash system which is used.

Below we will be covering how to crack the windows login password with hash.

How To Crack Windows Login In Hash Format

When using Windows operating system the SAM file is kept inside this folder location %SystemRoot%\System32\config.

When you first launch your windows PC or laptop the NTLM hash kicks in which then decrypts the SAM file by using SYSKEY.

Now the hashes will be loaded into the Windows registry which will allow the correct authentication which then lets you log in to your Windows desktop screen.

If you are looking to copy the SAM file you won’t be able to do this from within Windows, you will need to use a live CD or mount your hard drive to another PC so you can then copy the SAM file from your Windows installation.

Now you have the SAM file it’s time to use the SYSKEY to decrypt it with the hashes and move forward in cracking the Windows password.

How To Use Cain To Extract The SAM File Windows Password Hash

You will need to download the popular password-cracking software which is called Cain and Abel.

Once you have downloaded Cain and Abel password cracker follow the below steps to continue cracking the Windows password hash file.

1. Right-click on the desktop icon of Cain and Abel and choose “Run as administrator”.
2. Once Cain and Abel have opened choose the Cracker tab at the top of the screen.
3. Now click the white empty space and choose “Add to list”.
4. In the left section “Add NT Hashes from” box, accept the default selection of the system and “Import Hashes from the local system”, as shown below, and select ‘Next’.
5. Now you will see the retrieved password hashes.

Use Ophcrack To Crack The Retrieved Windows SAM File Password Hash

The hash using the NTLM is encrypted in the MD4 algorithm which can easily be cracked using the Pphcrack recovery live CD.

First, you will need to head over to Ophcrack to download the software and then use a tool called Rufus to burn the ISO to a CD or USB flash drive.

Once you have Ophcrack on a live CD or USB flash drive you can follow the below steps to crack the windows hashed password.

1. Insert the Live CD or USB flash drive into your Windows PC or Laptop.
2. Restart the PC and use your manufactures user manual to boot into multi-boot mode.
3. Choose Ophcrack Graphic Mode – Automatic by pressing the Enter key on it.
4. Wait for the menu to load and you will see a command terminal.
5. Wait for the command terminal screen to disappear.
6. Now enter the device where you have the SAM file located on your PC.
7. A pop-up will appear showing the hashed password.
8. Then the program will continue to automatically crack the windows password, so you just need to wait.
9. Once finished you will see the cracked hash windows password you can make a note of it.

Ophcrack may take some time to crack the Windows password due to the fact it is using the brute force dictionary attack technique to find out what the password is presuming it is a dictionary-based word.

FAQ – Windows Login Password Hash Format

Conclusion

In this article, we have covered what modern hash formats are used in the latest Windows operating systems to store passwords in.

We have also explained how you can crack Windows password hashes using Ophcrack and given a list of other password crackers you can use.