If the password is shorter than 14 characters, what happens to the password hash?

• A. It is rejected by Windows.
• B. It gets an NT hash.
• C. It gets a LANMAN hash.
• D. It is stored as plain text.

Answer: (C)

Windows uses two hashes for passwords to support legacy authentication: the NT hash and the LANMAN (LM) hash. The LM hash is designed for passwords up to 14 characters. When a password is shorter than 14, Windows generates and stores the LM hash using the legacy LM method, which involves uppercasing the password, splitting it into two 7-character blocks, and processing with DES. This is why short passwords end up with a LANMAN hash, reflecting the compatibility design rather than a stronger, modern hashing approach.