Re: Secure Storage of Secrets in Windows

From: Nick FitzGerald (nick@virus-l.demon.co.uk)
Date: Tue May 18 1999 - 05:35:28 PDT

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    > The Win32 API provides such service. Although in the past it was
    > found that its encryption was rather weak Microsoft claims to have
    > fixed it, no one else has claimed otherwise, and its better than
    > nothing. (References:
    > http://www.netsys.com/firewalls/firewalls-9512/0442.html
    > http://www.geek-girl.com/bugtraq/1995_4/0138.html ).
    >
    > So here is a reminder to Windows application programs that you can
    > use WNetCachePassword and WNetGetCachedPassword, which in some
    > documentation MS calls the Master Password API.
    
    Indeed.
    
    And for admins who wish to prevent user machines from caching
    passwords the following Win9x REG file may be useful:
    
       REGEDIT4
    
       [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Network]
       "DisablePwdCaching"=dword:00000001
    
    Apply that to a client machine then nuke all PWL files in the Windows
    dir and you need not worry whether future vulnerabilities might open
    you to exposure from cached passwords.
    
    I imagine there is something similar for NT.  Anyone know the
    details?
    
    
    Regards,
    
    Nick FitzGerald
    



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