Crack New User SSH Login

Introduction

In this challenge, you'll be cracking a forgotten SSH password for a newly created user account named "testuser" on localhost. The goal is to use Hydra to brute-force the password from a provided password list.

The challenge involves setting up a test environment with a user account, a password list, and enabling password authentication for SSH. You'll then use Hydra to target the SSH service on 127.0.0.1, specifying the username "testuser" and the password list located at ~/project/passwords.txt. Successful execution of the Hydra command will reveal the correct password.

Skills Graph

%%%%{init: {'theme':'neutral'}}%%%% flowchart RL hydra(("Hydra")) -.-> hydra/HydraGroup(["Hydra"]) hydra/HydraGroup -.-> hydra/single_username("Single Username Attack") hydra/HydraGroup -.-> hydra/ssh_attack("SSH Brute Force") hydra/HydraGroup -.-> hydra/output_saving("Output File Saving") subgraph Lab Skills hydra/single_username -.-> lab-550712{{"Crack New User SSH Login"}} hydra/ssh_attack -.-> lab-550712{{"Crack New User SSH Login"}} hydra/output_saving -.-> lab-550712{{"Crack New User SSH Login"}} end

A test user account "testuser" was created for SSH access, but the password was forgotten. Use Hydra to find the password from a common password list on localhost.

Tasks

Use Hydra to brute-force the SSH password for the user testuser on 127.0.0.1, using the passwords.txt file located in the ~/project directory.
Save the output of the Hydra command to a file named ~/project/results.txt.

Requirements

You must use Hydra to perform the brute-force attack.
The target is the SSH service running on 127.0.0.1.
The username is testuser.
The password list is located at ~/project/passwords.txt.
You must execute the Hydra command from the ~/project directory.
You must save the output of the Hydra command to a file named ~/project/results.txt.

Examples

After a successful attack, Hydra's output should include a line similar to:

[22][ssh] host: 127.0.0.1   login: testuser   password: xxxxx

This indicates that the password for testuser is xxxx.

Hints

Use the -l option to specify the username and the -P option to specify the password file.
The basic Hydra command structure is: hydra -l <username> -P <password_file> -o <output_file> <service>://<target>
Remember to specify the target as ssh://127.0.0.1.

✨ Check Solution and Practice

Summary

In this challenge, the objective is to crack the SSH login for a forgotten "testuser" account on localhost using Hydra. The setup involves creating a password list (passwords.txt), adding the "testuser" account with a known password, enabling password authentication for SSH, and restarting the SSH service.

The task requires using Hydra to brute-force the SSH password for "testuser" on 127.0.0.1 using the created password list. The challenge emphasizes the correct usage of Hydra command-line options, specifically -l for username, -P for the password file, and the correct service and target specification (ssh://127.0.0.1). Successful execution is verified by confirming that Hydra's output reveals the correct password.