Cracks password hashes with Hashcat, covering hash-type identification, dictionary/brute-force/rule-based attack modes, custom rule creation, GPU benchmarking, and password-strength/compliance reporting. Use for authorized penetration testing or security audits that need to evaluate password strength or crack captured hashes.
Start a fresh conversation. Replace the highlighted placeholders.
Use performing-hash-cracking-with-hashcat to to assess password strength for [authorized audit scope and hash file], identify the hash type, perform only authorized recovery attempts, and produce a sanitized password-strength and policy-compliance report; confirm written authorization and securely dispose of recovered passwords when the engagement concludes.
Required inputs
[authorized audit scope and hash file]
User-approved starter prompt based on a pinned source version; check current skill requirements before running. Task evidence ↗
SKILL.md
name: performing-hash-cracking-with-hashcatdescription: Cracks password hashes with Hashcat, covering hash-type identification, dictionary/brute-force/rule-based attack modes, custom rule creation, GPU benchmarking, and password-strength/compliance reporting. Use for authorized penetration testing or security audits that need to evaluate password strength or crack captured hashes.domain: cybersecuritysubdomain: cryptographytags: - cryptography- hash-cracking- password-security- hashcat- penetration-testingversion: '1.0'author: mahipallicense: Apache-2.0nist_csf: - PR.DS-01- PR.DS-02- PR.DS-10mitre_attack: - T1600- T1573- T1553
Performing Hash Cracking with Hashcat
Overview
Hash cracking is an essential skill for penetration testers and security auditors to evaluate password strength. Hashcat is the world's fastest password recovery tool, supporting over 300 hash types with GPU acceleration. This skill covers using hashcat for authorized password auditing, understanding attack modes, creating effective rule sets, and generating hash analysis reports. This is strictly for authorized penetration testing and password policy assessment.
When to Use
When conducting security assessments that involve performing hash cracking with hashcat
When following incident response procedures for related security events
When performing scheduled security testing or auditing activities
When validating security controls through hands-on testing
Prerequisites
Familiarity with cryptography concepts and tools
Access to a test or lab environment for safe execution
Python 3.8+ with required dependencies installed
Appropriate authorization for any testing activities
Objectives
Identify hash types from captured hashes
Execute dictionary, brute-force, and rule-based attacks
Create custom hashcat rules for targeted cracking
Analyze password strength from cracking results
Generate compliance reports on password policy effectiveness
Benchmark GPU performance for hash cracking
Key Concepts
Hashcat Attack Modes
Mode
Flag
Description
Use Case
Dictionary
-a 0
Wordlist attack
Known password patterns
Combination
-a 1
Combine two wordlists
Compound passwords
Brute-force
-a 3
Mask-based enumeration
Short passwords
Rule-based
-a 0 -r
Dictionary + transformation rules
Complex variations
Hybrid
-a 6/7
Wordlist + mask
Passwords with appended numbers
Common Hash Types
Hash Mode
Type
Example Use
0
MD5
Legacy web apps
100
SHA-1
Legacy systems
1000
NTLM
Windows credentials
1800
sha512crypt
Linux /etc/shadow
3200
bcrypt
Modern web apps
13100
Kerberos TGS-REP
Active Directory
Security Considerations
Only perform hash cracking with explicit written authorization
Secure all captured hash data in transit and at rest
Report all cracked passwords immediately to asset owners
Use results to improve password policies, not exploit users
Destroy cracked password data after engagement concludes
Follow rules of engagement for penetration test scope