The hidden value of “C:\users” path.

A Folder icon — AI generated

When pentesting a Windows box, one of the easiest places to look at (but always forgotten) is the C:\Users directory. This folder holds valuable information about logged-in users and their activities, which can be leveraged for privilege escalation and lateral movement. When combined with techniques like password spraying and service exploitation, the findings in C:\Users can lead to significant breakthroughs. Let me show you how!

Every Windows system creates a separate folder under C:\Users for each user who logs into the system. These folders provide insight into:

• Active User Accounts: Each folder name corresponds to a user account.
• Potential Privileged Accounts: Users like admin, svc-backup, or administrator may have elevated privileges.
• Dormant Accounts: Even inactive or old accounts can contain valuable information.

For example, consider the following user folders:

C:\Users\chepe
C:\Users\jc
C:\Users\james
C:\Users\mary
C:\Users\alice
C:\Users\bob

Based on above, six users logged at this box at one point. Some may use the system often. It worth checking what they may have left in the system or what activities do they do.

You can extract the usernames from the folder structure. Simply list the…