asterisk logger

A while back, Elena told you how to reveal passwords that are protected by asterisks in Internet Explorer. However, what happens if you want to do the same thing within the various applications and programs you use on your PC? Maybe you've forgotten a password that's saved in your cache so you never have to enter it or maybe you just want to spy on who is using your PC?

Many applications and programs use the simple asterisk method of encryption to stop prying eyes from seeing your passwords on screen. However, Asterisk Logger can help you reveal passwords as they are typed in a separate window. It works across several applications, such as CuteFTP, CoffeeCup Free FTP, VNC, IncrediMail, Outlook Express so chances are, it may be able to reveal the password with whichever application you're working with. Whenever a new window containing a password box is opened, Asterisk Logger automatically reveals the password inside the box and saves it to a list in the main window of Asterisk Logger. It also reveals the date/time that the password was revealed, the name of the application that contains the revealed password box, and the executable file of the application.

Note that you'll probably find that the success rate is hit and miss with this program. Whilst it works on many older programs, newer ones are often designed to prevent programs like this from cracking passwords.

A Cambridge University researcher whose blog was being hacked apparently managed to find his attacker's password just by searching in Google. Using a dictionary attack in English and Russian, the researcher simply entered his attacker's MD5 hash (used by Wordpress to store passwords) into Google, which revealed the word "Anthony", the attacker's password. This is just another example of how important it is for you to have strong passwords and to make sure you protect them at all times. Check out Elena's good tip on how to create and remember strong passwords. She also wrote up on how to unveil hidden passwords in web pages, a trick similar to that which the Cambridge University researcher pulled.

We've also found a few other applications that allow you to reveal or crack passwords. Ophcrack uses rainbow tables to crack passwords, Password Revealer can show passwords typed in edit boxes, and both Asterisk Key and Asterisk Logger can unmask the password that hides under asterisks. Remember though, try to keep your use of these programs "legal", ie don't start trying to break into banking sites or people's emails. If what your looking for is to recover a lost password, check out our list of top password recovery tools.