T1003.002

Official Description

Adversaries may attempt to extract credential material from the Security Account Manager (SAM) database either through in-memory techniques or through the Windows Registry where the SAM database is stored. The SAM is a database file that contains local accounts for the host, typically those found with the <code>net user</code> command. Enumerating the SAM database requires SYSTEM level access.

A number of tools can be used to retrieve the SAM file through in-memory techniques:

* pwdumpx.exe
* [gsecdump](https://attack.mitre.org/software/S0008)
* [Mimikatz](https://attack.mitre.org/software/S0002)
* secretsdump.py

Alternatively, the SAM can be extracted from the Registry with Reg:

* <code>reg save HKLM\sam sam</code>
* <code>reg save HKLM\system system</code>

Creddump7 can then be used to process the SAM database locally to retrieve hashes.(Citation: GitHub Creddump7)

Notes:

* RID 500 account is the local, built-in administrator.
* RID 501 is the guest account.
* User accounts start with a RID of 1,000+.

Tactics: Credential Access
Platforms: Windows
Parent Technique: T1003 · OS Credential Dumping
MITRE Version: 1.1
Last Modified: May 12, 2026

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Reported Context (1)

Threat actors saved a copy of the SAM registry hive during credential harvesting. PaperCut Zero-Days Used to Deploy AdaptixC2 and Compromise an Education Customer’s Domain

CVE (2)

Malware (1)

MITRE ATT&CK (18)

Vendors (2)

Products (3)

Tools (8)

Industries (1)

Note: Related entities, including threat actors, malware, CVEs, MITRE ATT&CK techniques, vendors, products, tools, countries, and industries, are shown when they appear in the same reporting. Their presence does not necessarily mean they were targeted, compromised, vulnerable, responsible for the activity, or directly involved in the incident.