How is python-keyring implemented on Windows?

python windows security python-keyring
flak37 picture flak37 · Feb 7, 2013 · Viewed 21.2k times · Source

How does python-keyring provide security on Windows?

In GNOME/KDE on Linux, the user is prompted to enter his password to authorize access to the keyring on a per-application basis.

In Windows there is no such prompt when an application accesses the keyring. What is stopping a random python application to retrieve a password from the keyring by running 

import keyring
get_password(service, username)

How is user consent implemented? Is the whole concept, atleast in Windows, based on the assumption that all installed programs are 'trusted'?

Answer

jat255 picture jat255 · Jun 11, 2015

Researching this a bit, it appears that the passwords are stored within a Windows Credential Vault, which is the equivalent of the Gnome or KDE keyrings. You can actually see the ones that you have stored by opening up the Windows Credential Manager. I get there by just typing in Credential Manager on Windows 8.1 from the start screen, but I think you can get to it from the User accounts page as well.

Anyway, as you can see from the attached image, the password that I added to the keyring as a test is displayed under Windows Credentials -> Generic Credentials -> keyring_demo. Opening this window up as another user on the PC does not show this password, so it seems secured from other Users. This screen also allows you to revoke or change passwords.

Windows credential manager

As to how consent is implemented, I believe keyring will operate as long as your Windows user account is logged in, but I don't know the specifics.

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