How To Secure Passwords Inside PowerShell Scripts

by

In this blog post, I will show you how to Secure Passwords Inside PowerShell Scripts

In PowerShell, managing secure passwords is critical for maintaining the integrity and confidentiality of your systems.

When creating scripts that require password inputs, it’s best to utilize the Get-Credential cmdlet, which prompts the user to securely enter their credentials.

This method avoids hard-coding sensitive information directly into scripts. Additionally, for automated processes, you can encrypt passwords using the ConvertTo-SecureString and ConvertFrom-SecureString cmdlets.

This approach ensures that passwords are stored in an encrypted state, protecting them from being exposed in plain text. By implementing these security practices, you not only adhere to best practices but also fortify your PowerShell scripts against potential security vulnerabilities.

Secure Passwords Inside PowerShell Scripts

The first step I will take to secure my password is by creating a file called password.txt. This file will keep the password in an encrypted format.

After I create the file, I will run the following script. The script will prompt for a username and password. I will run the script to save them.

$credential = Get-Credential
$credential.Password | ConvertFrom-SecureString | Set-Content password.txt

At this stage, I have the password encrypted and will now integrate it into my code.

In the example below, I use the password to connect to Office 365.

$powerUser = "o365_admin@company.onmicrosoft.com"
$password = Get-Content .\password.txt | ConvertTo-SecureString
$adminCredential = New-Object -TypeName System.Management.Automation.PSCredential -argumentlist $powerUser,$password
Connect-MsolService –Credential $adminCredential

Make sure the script and password file are located in the same directory.