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-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 =========================================================================== AUSCERT External Security Bulletin Redistribution ESB-2013.0402 Cisco IOS and Cisco IOS XE Type 4 Passwords Issue 19 March 2013 =========================================================================== AusCERT Security Bulletin Summary --------------------------------- Product: Cisco IOS and Cisco IOS XE Publisher: Cisco Systems Operating System: Cisco Impact/Access: Reduced Security -- Remote/Unauthenticated Resolution: Mitigation Original Bulletin: http://tools.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityResponse/cisco-sr-20130318-type4 - --------------------------BEGIN INCLUDED TEXT-------------------- Cisco Security Response Cisco IOS and Cisco IOS XE Type 4 Passwords Issue Document ID: 33464 http://tools.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityResponse/cisco-sr-20130318-type4 Revision 1.0 For Public Release 2013 March 18 16:00 UTC (GMT) Contents Response Additional Information Status of this Notice: Final Revision History Cisco Security Procedures Cisco Response This is the Cisco response to research performed by Mr. Philipp Schmidt and Mr. Jens Steube from the Hashcat Project on the weakness of Type 4 passwords on Cisco IOS and Cisco IOS XE devices. Mr. Schmidt and Mr. Steube reported this issue to the Cisco PSIRT on March 12, 2013. Cisco would like to thank Mr. Schmidt and Mr. Steube for sharing their research with Cisco and working toward a coordinated disclosure of this issue. This Cisco Security Response is available at http://tools.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityResponse/cisco-sr-20130318-type4 Additional Information A limited number of Cisco IOS and Cisco IOS XE releases based on the Cisco IOS 15 code base include support for a new algorithm to hash user-provided plaintext passwords. This algorithm is called Type 4, and a password hashed using this algorithm is referred to as a Type 4 password. The Type 4 algorithm was designed to be a stronger alternative to the existing Type 5 and Type 7 algorithms to increase the resiliency of passwords used for the enable secret password and username username secret password commands against brute-force attacks. The design called for using Password-Based Key Derivation Function version 2 (PBKDF2), as described in RFC 2898 section 5.1, with the following input values: Hash algorithm = SHA-256 Password = the user-provided plaintext password Salt = 80 bits (generated by calling a cryptographically secure random number generator) Iteration count = 1,000 (one thousand) Due to an implementation issue, the Type 4 password algorithm does not use PBKDF2 and does not use a salt, but instead performs a single iteration of SHA-256 over the user-provided plaintext password. This approach causes a Type 4 password to be less resilient to brute-force attacks than a Type 5 password of equivalent complexity. The following issues were also introduced because of the implementation of Type 4 passwords: A device running a Cisco IOS or IOS XE release with support for Type 4 passwords lost the capability to create a Type 5 password from a user-provided plaintext password Backward compatibility problems may arise when downgrading from a device running a Cisco IOS or IOS XE release with Type 4 password support and Type 4 passwords configured to a Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release that does not support Type 4 passwords. Depending on the specific device configuration, the administrator may not be able to log in to the device or to change into privileged EXEC mode, requiring a password recovery process to be performed. All the preceding issues apply only to devices running Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE releases with support for Type 4 passwords, and only to the "enable secret <password>" and "username <username> secret <password>" commands. No other Cisco IOS or IOS XE features use this algorithm to hash passwords or keys. For example, these issues do not affect Open Shortest Path First (OSPF), Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), Routing Information Protocol (RIP), any other routing protocol keys, or pre-shared keys for IPsec. These issues do not apply to devices running a Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release without support for Type 4 passwords. Determining Whether a Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE Release Supports Type 4 Passwords Administrators can use the following procedure to determine whether the Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release running on a given device includes support for Type 4 passwords: 1) Log in to the device and execute the show version | include IOS command: router#show version | include IOS Cisco IOS Software, 1841 Software (C1841-ADVENTERPRISEK9-M), Version 15.3(1)T, RELEASE SOFTWARE (fc1) router# If the version number starts with "15" proceed to the next step. Otherwise, the Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release running on the device does not include support for Type 4 passwords. 2) While logged in to the device as a privileged user, enter configuration mode and execute an enable secret ? command: router#configure terminal Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z. router#(config)#enable secret ? 0 Specifies an UNENCRYPTED password will follow 4 Specifies an SHA256 ENCRYPTED secret will follow 5 Specifies a MD5 ENCRYPTED secret will follow LINE The UNENCRYPTED (cleartext) 'enable' secret level Set exec level password router(config)# In the preceding example, the line "4 Specifies an SHA256 ENCRYPTED secret will follow" indicates the Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release running on the device does supports Type 4 passwords. router#conf t Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z. router#(config)#enable secret ? 0 Specifies an UNENCRYPTED password will follow 5 Specifies a MD5 ENCRYPTED secret will follow LINE The UNENCRYPTED (cleartext) 'enable' secret level Set exec level password router(config)# In the preceding example, there is no "4 Specifies an SHA256 ENCRYPTED secret will follow" in the help output of the enable secret command. This output indicates the Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release running on this device does not support Type 4 passwords. Determining Whether a Device Has Any Type 4 Passwords Configured A device running a Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release with support for Type 4 passwords may not actually have any Type 4 passwords in the device configuration. A device that was upgraded from a Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release without support for Type 4 passwords to a Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release that does support Type 4 passwords may contain an enable secret password command and zero or more username username secret password commands that have Type 5 passwords because they were configured before the upgrade. The following command can be used to determine whether any Type 4 passwords are present on the device configuration: show running-config | include ^(enable secret 4|username.*secret.4) The following example shows a device without any Type 4 passwords configured: router#show running-config | include ^(enable secret 4|username.*secret.4) router# The following example shows a device with Type 4 passwords configured for both the "enable secret <password>" and the "username <username> secret <password>" commands. The presence of a Type 4 password is indicated by the number 4 that immediately follows the secret keyword: router#show running-config | include ^(enable secret 4|username.*secret.4) enable secret 4 ohKCwRDiX5YiRkTbLspqXvQkxiL91lDUlt.JzPd33RY username demo secret 4 ohKCwRDiX5YiRkTbLspqXvQkxiL91lDUlt.JzPd33RY router# Behavior of a Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE Release with Support for Type 4 Passwords A device running a Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release with support for Type 4 passwords will exhibit the following behavior: 1) Configuring an enable secret password or username username secret password command (with password being a plaintext password) will cause a Type 4 password to be generated: router#configure terminal Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z. router(config)#enable secret Th1z#1s+53kri7 router(config)#username demo secret Th1z#1s+53kri7 router(config)#do show running-config | include ^(enable|username) enable secret 4 ohKCwRDiX5YiRkTbLspqXvQkxiL91lDUlt.JzPd33RY username demo secret 4 ohKCwRDiX5YiRkTbLspqXvQkxiL91lDUlt.JzPd33RY router(config)# Note: There is no way to supply a plaintext password as an argument to either the enable secret password or username username secret password and indicate that a Type 5 password should be generated. The only way to configure either an enable secret password or username username secret password with a Type 5 password is using the enable secret 5 password or username username secret 5 password commands, where password is a previously generated Type 5 password. 2) Configuring an enable secret 5 password or username username secret 5 password (where password is a previously generated Type 5 password) will result in a warning, but the password will be correctly parsed, added to the configuration, and fully functional. The generated warning can safely be ignored. An example follows: router#configure terminal Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z. router(config)#enable secret 5 $1$YXEj$Fr7OC1Jh62xJRb/rdIm9d0 Warning: The CLI will be deprecated soon 'enable secret 5 $1$YXEj$Fr7OC1Jh62xJRb/rdIm9d0' Please move to 'enable secret <password>' CLI router(config)#username demo secret 5 $1$Gd0I$VJkZkCRG1d1FvY7we7dzM. Warning: MD5 encryption will be deprecated soon.Please move to SHA256 encryption. router(config)#do show running-config | include ^(enable|username) enable secret 5 $1$YXEj$Fr7OC1Jh62xJRb/rdIm9d0 username demo secret 5 $1$Gd0I$VJkZkCRG1d1FvY7we7dzM. router(config)# 3) If the device was upgraded from a previous Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release without support for Type 4 passwords, and the configuration included the commands enable secret 5 password or username username secret 5 password, those Type 5 passwords will be parsed, added to the configuration, and fully functional. There is no automatic conversion of existing Type 5 passwords to Type 4 passwords after upgrading a device to a Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release that has support for Type 4 passwords. Replacing a Type 4 Password with a Type 5 Password Customers running a Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release with support for Type 4 passwords and currently using Type 4 passwords on their device configuration may want to replace those Type 4 passwords with Type 5 passwords. Reasons include the following: Preparation for a device downgrade to a Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release that does not support Type 4 passwords Compatibility with network management systems or other tools that cannot handle a device configuration that includes Type 4 passwords An organizational security policy that dictates the use of Type 5 passwords Concerns about the resiliency of Type 4 passwords versus Type 5 passwords against brute-force attacks As mentioned previously, a Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release with support for Type 4 passwords does not allow the generation of a Type 5 password from a plaintext password on the device itself. Customers who need to replace a Type 4 password with a Type 5 password must generate the Type 5 password outside the device and then copy the Type 5 password to the device configuration. There are two options to generate a Type 5 password: Using another device running a Cisco IOS or Cisco IOS XE release without Type 4 support Using the openssl command-line tool (part of the OpenSSL Project) In either case, administrators will need access to the plaintext version of the password to generate the Type 5 password. Using Another Device to Generate a Type 5 Password 1) Either the enable secret password or the username username secret password command can be used to generate a Type 5 password from a plaintext password. The administrator must log in to the device using credentials that allow the administrator to go into configuration mode and execute the chosen command. The following example shows the username username secret password command and the string Th1z#1s+53kri7 as the plaintext password: router#configure terminal Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z. router(config)#username demo secret Th1z#1s+53kri7 router(config)#do show running-config | include username demo.*secret 5 username demo secret 5 $1$M/wf$iqBnv/g3GuVUsCpWcDFS20 router(config)#no username demo router(config)# 2) Copy the resulting Type 5 password (which is $1$M/wf$iqBnv/g3GuVUsCpWcDFS20 in the preceding example). Using the openssl Tool to Generate a Type 5 Password 1) The openssl tool can generate a Type 5 password when using a specific set of command-line arguments, as follows: openssl passwd -salt `openssl rand -base64 3` -1 PLAINTEXT_PASSWORD Administrators must replace the string PLAINTEXT_PASSWORD with the appropriate plaintext password. The following example uses the string Th1z#1s+53kri7 as the plaintext password: hostname$ openssl passwd -salt `openssl rand -base64 3` -1 Th1z#1s+53kri7 $1$dxVt$FSJmj1O6JUZdbUjxZkIuD. 2) Copy the resulting Type 5 password (which is $1$dxVt$FSJmj1O6JUZdbUjxZkIuD. in the preceding example). Note: Depending on the characters in the plaintext password, you may need to enclose it between quotes. Copying the Type 5 Password to the Targeted Device Paste the previously generated Type 5 password into the appropriate command, either enable secret 5 password or username username secret 5 password. Remember to specify the type of encryption by adding the number 5 after the secret keyword in both commands. Otherwise, the provided password will be interpreted as a plaintext password. The following example uses the Type 5 password generated on another device as the enable secret password, and the Type 5 password generated by openssl becomes the user password for the user named demo: router#configure terminal Enter configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z. router(config)#username demo secret 5 $1$dxVt$FSJmj1O6JUZdbUjxZkIuD. Warning: MD5 encryption will be deprecated soon.Please move to SHA256 encryption. router(config)#enable secret 5 $1$M/wf$iqBnv/g3GuVUsCpWcDFS20 Warning: The CLI will be deprecated soon 'enable secret 5 $1$M/wf$iqBnv/g3GuVUsCpWcDFS20' Please move to 'enable secret <password>' CLI router(config)# Notes A deprecation warning will be generated when using a Type 5 password for either the enable secret 5 command or the username username secret 5 password command. This warning can be safely ignored. If the deprecation warning for either the enable secret 5 command or the username username secret 5 password command does not occur, the device is not interpreting the provided password as a Type 5 password. Make sure the number 5 is included after the secret keyword in either command. The Future of Type 4 Passwords on Cisco IOS and Cisco IOS XE Because of the issues discussed in this Security Response, Cisco is taking the following actions for future Cisco IOS and Cisco IOS XE releases: Type 4 passwords will be deprecated: Future Cisco IOS and Cisco IOS XE releases will not generate Type 4 passwords. However, to maintain backward compatibility, existing Type 4 passwords will be parsed and accepted. Customers will need to manually remove the existing Type 4 passwords from their configuration. The enable secret password and username username secret password commands will revert to their original behavior: Both commands, when provided with a plaintext password, will generate a Type 5 password. This will be the same behavior as before the introduction of Type 4 passwords. This step is being taken to preserve backward compatibility. Type 5 passwords will not be deprecated: This will be done to preserve backward compatibility. The deprecation warning for Type 5 passwords will be removed. A new password type will be introduced: This new password type will implement the original design intended for Type 4 passwords, which is PBKDF2 with SHA-256, an 80-bit salt, and 1,000 iterations. The exact type is yet to be determined. New command-line interface commands will be introduced: The new commands will allow Cisco customers to configure the new password type for both enable secret password and username username secret password. This will allow Cisco customers to gradually migrate to the new password type, while allowing them to use the existing syntax to preserve backward compatibility. The exact syntax for the new commands is yet to be determined. Status of this Notice: Final THIS DOCUMENT IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" BASIS AND DOES NOT IMPLY ANY KIND OF GUARANTEE OR WARRANTY, INCLUDING THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR USE. YOUR USE OF THE INFORMATION ON THE DOCUMENT OR MATERIALS LINKED FROM THE DOCUMENT IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. CISCO RESERVES THE RIGHT TO CHANGE OR UPDATE THIS DOCUMENT AT ANY TIME. A stand-alone copy or Paraphrase of the text of this document that omits the distribution URL in the following section is an uncontrolled copy, and may lack important information or contain factual errors. Revision History Revision 1.0 2013-March-18 Initial public release. 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