OAT-008 Credential Stuffing

This is an automated threat. To view all automated threats, please see the Automated Threat Category page. The OWASP Automated Threat Handbook - Wed Applications (, print), an output of the OWASP Automated Threats to Web Applications Project, provides a fuller guide to each threat, detection methods and countermeasures. The helps to correctly identify the automated threat.

OWASP Automated Threat (OAT) Identity Number
OAT-008

Threat Event Name
Credential Stuffing

Summary Defining Characteristics
Mass log in attempts used to verify the validity of stolen username/password pairs.

Description
Lists of authentication credentials stolen from elsewhere are tested against the application’s authentication mechanisms to identify whether users have re-used the same login credentials. The stolen usernames (often email addresses) and password pairs could have been sourced directly from another application by the attacker, purchased in a criminal marketplace, or obtained from publicly available breach data dumps.

Unlike OAT-007 Credential Cracking, Credential Stuffing does not involve any brute-forcing or guessing of values; instead credentials used in other applications are being tested for validity.

Other Names and Examples
Account checker attack; Account checking; Account takeover; Account takeover attack; Login Stuffing; Password list attack; Password re-use; Stolen credentials; Use of stolen credentials

CAPEC Category / Attack Pattern IDs

 * 210 Abuse of Functionality

CWE Base / Class / Variant IDs

 * 799 Improper Control of Interaction Frequency
 * 837 Improper Enforcement of a Single, Unique Action

WASC Threat IDs

 * 21 Insufficient Anti-Automation
 * 42 Abuse of Functionality

OWASP Attack Category / Attack IDs

 * Abuse of Functionality
 * Credential Stuffing