Step-by-step guide on how to crack, open, or unlock password protected or encrypted ZIP, PDF, RAR, XLS, and XLSX files on Windows XP/Vista/7/8 for free.
NetAction's Guide to Using Encryption Software Table of Contents. What is encryption, and how does it work? Fundamentals; Software. Do I need encryption?
Less experienced attackers use exploit tools developed by others, available at a variety of Web sites. More sophisticated attackers write their own customized attack tools and employ a good deal of pragmatism to gain access. This sample chapter explores basic and more advanced techniques for gaining access by manipulating applications and operating systems. At this stage of the siege, the attacker has finished scanning the target network, developing an inventory of target systems and potential vulnerabilities on those machines. Next, the attacker wants to gain access on the target systems. The particular approach to gaining access depends heavily on the skill level of the attacker, with simple script kiddies trolling for exploits and more sophisticated attackers using highly pragmatic approaches. Script Kiddie Exploit Trolling To try to gain access, the average script kiddie typically just takes the output from a vulnerability scanner and surfs to a Web site offering vulnerability exploitation programs to the public. These exploit programs are little chunks of code that craft very specific packets designed to make a vulnerable program execute commands of an attacker's choosing, cough up unauthorized data, or even crash in a DoS attack. Several organizations offer huge arsenals of these free, canned exploits, with search engines allowing an attacker to look up a particular application, operating system, or discovered vulnerability. Some of the most useful Web sites offering up large databases chock full of exploits include the following: Some controversy surrounds the organizations distributing these exploits. Most of them have a philosophy of complete disclosure: If some attackers know about these exploits, they should be made public so that everyone can analyze, understand, and defend against them. With this mindset, these purveyors of explicit exploit information argue that they are merely providing a service to the Internet community, helping the good guys keep up with the bad guys. Others take the view that these exploits just make evil attacks easier and more prevalent. Although I respect the arguments of both sides of this disclosure controversy, I tend to fall into the full-disclosure camp (but you could have guessed that, given the nature of this book). As shown in Figure 7.1, a script kiddie can search one of the exploit databases to find an exploit for a hole detected during a vulnerability scan. The script kiddie can then download the prepackaged exploit, configure it to run against the target, and launch the attack, usually without even really understanding how the exploit functions. That's what makes this kind of attacker a script kiddie. Although this indiscriminate attack technique fails against well-fortified systems, it is remarkably effective against huge numbers of machines on the Internet with system administrators who do not keep their systems patched and configured securely.
- The Encrypting File System (EFS) is a feature of the Windows 2000 operating system that lets any file or folder be stored in encrypted form and decrypted only by an.
- Password Attacks. Passwords are the most commonly used computer security tool in the world today. In many organizations, the lowly password often protects some of the.
Gaining Access to Target Systems Using Application and Operating System Attacks
With encrypted hard drive in one hand and its memory dump in the other one (taken when encrypted disk was still mounted) we plug HDD into our “invesgitator’s.