What is the length of the LANMAN hash before padding?

Study for the SANS560 GIAC Penetration Tester (GPEN) Test. Study with flashcards and multiple choice questions, each question has hints and explanations. Get ready for your exam!

Multiple Choice

What is the length of the LANMAN hash before padding?

Explanation:
The LANMAN hash is 16 bytes long because it results from two DES encryptions of a fixed constant, using two 7-character halves of the password. Each DES output is 8 bytes, and the LM hash is simply these two 8-byte results concatenated, giving 16 bytes in total. When you see it hex-encoded, that 16-byte value appears as 32 hex characters, but the actual binary length is 16 bytes. The other lengths don’t fit because they would imply only one DES block (8 bytes) or far more data than the two DES outputs produce.

The LANMAN hash is 16 bytes long because it results from two DES encryptions of a fixed constant, using two 7-character halves of the password. Each DES output is 8 bytes, and the LM hash is simply these two 8-byte results concatenated, giving 16 bytes in total. When you see it hex-encoded, that 16-byte value appears as 32 hex characters, but the actual binary length is 16 bytes. The other lengths don’t fit because they would imply only one DES block (8 bytes) or far more data than the two DES outputs produce.

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