5 Ways Hackers Steal Passwords



AI Summary

  1. Guessing: Attackers make educated guesses based on what they know about you. Account lockouts after several failed attempts help mitigate this risk.

  2. Harvesting: This involves capturing passwords via:

    • Keyloggers: Malicious software that records keystrokes.
    • Phishing: Users are tricked into entering their passwords on fake websites.
  3. Cracking: Attackers obtain encrypted password files and attempt to decrypt them to access passwords.

  4. Spraying: A single password guess is tested across multiple accounts on the same system to find a match.

  5. Stuffing: Attackers try a password across various systems, hoping it works on at least one.