01-24-2017, 06:09 PM
No, hashcat doesn't guess the hash type.
As many "hash identification" projects show, there is no such think as 100% knowing which hash type the input is from a random set of some (hex) bytes.
It only works if the "hash" input has a signature like "$7z$" for -m 11600 = 7-Zip.
But hashcat doesn't even try to search for signature.
The only thing it has, is a default hash type. Which is... well, MD5 (-m 0 = MD5).
But this isn't pullet proof either, there are other hashes that have exactly the same length and format like MD5.
So, the short answer is: just always specify the "-m" parameter. The only valid reason to omit is if you are an advanced user and know that the default is MD5 and that the hash/hashes are all MD5 hashes.
As many "hash identification" projects show, there is no such think as 100% knowing which hash type the input is from a random set of some (hex) bytes.
It only works if the "hash" input has a signature like "$7z$" for -m 11600 = 7-Zip.
But hashcat doesn't even try to search for signature.
The only thing it has, is a default hash type. Which is... well, MD5 (-m 0 = MD5).
But this isn't pullet proof either, there are other hashes that have exactly the same length and format like MD5.
So, the short answer is: just always specify the "-m" parameter. The only valid reason to omit is if you are an advanced user and know that the default is MD5 and that the hash/hashes are all MD5 hashes.