A Comprehensive Guide to Generating and Cracking Hashes in Kali Linux with John the Ripper

3/11/20242 min read

cyber crack the hash
cyber crack the hash

Introduction

In this tutorial, we will explore how to create different hashes using John the Ripper in Kali Linux. John the Ripper is a powerful password cracking tool that can be used for various purposes, including generating and cracking different types of hashes.

Installing John the Ripper

Before we can start generating hashes, we need to install John the Ripper on our Kali Linux machine. Here are the steps to install it:

  1. Open a terminal in Kali Linux.
  2. Update the package lists by running the following command: 
    sudo apt update
  3. Install John the Ripper by running the following command: 
    sudo apt install john

Generating Hashes

Once we have installed John the Ripper, we can generate different types of hashes using it. Here are a few examples:

MD5 Hash

To generate an MD5 hash, we can use the following command:

echo -n "password" | md5sum

Replace "password" with the actual password you want to hash. The output will be the MD5 hash of the password.

SHA-256 Hash

To generate a SHA-256 hash, we can use the following command:

echo -n "password" | sha256sum

Replace "password" with the actual password you want to hash. The output will be the SHA-256 hash of the password.

bcrypt Hash

To generate a bcrypt hash, we can use the following command:

htpasswd -bnBC 10 "" "password" | tr -d ':\n'

Replace "password" with the actual password you want to hash. The output will be the bcrypt hash of the password.

Cracking Hashes

Now that we know how to generate different types of hashes, let's explore how to crack them using John the Ripper. Here are the steps:

  1. Create a file with the hash you want to crack. For example, if you have an MD5 hash, create a file called "md5.txt" and paste the hash inside.
  2. Run the following command to crack the hash: 
    john --format=FORMAT --wordlist=WORDLIST FILE
    Replace "FORMAT" with the format of the hash you want to crack (e.g., "md5" for MD5 hashes). Replace "WORDLIST" with the path to a wordlist file that contains potential passwords. Replace "FILE" with the path to the file that contains the hash you want to crack.
  3. Wait for John the Ripper to crack the hash. Depending on the complexity of the password and the resources of your machine, this process may take some time.
  4. Once the hash is cracked, John the Ripper will display the password in the terminal.

Conclusion

John the Ripper is a powerful tool for generating and cracking different types of hashes. In this tutorial, we learned how to install John the Ripper in Kali Linux, generate MD5, SHA-256, and bcrypt hashes, and crack them using John the Ripper. Remember to use this tool responsibly and only on systems that you have permission to test.

By understanding how hashes are generated and cracked, you can better protect your own passwords and assess the security of your systems.