Suppose I am in a situation that I am forced to log in to my account using someone else's computer. Is there any secure way to do that so that I would be sure that my login details (i.e. password) are not recorded by any means (e.g. keystroke logging)? Or if it is impossible, what are the ways to at least mitigate the risks?
Although related, but note that this is a bit different from this question since I am not using my own computer to log in.
This is an interesting question!
The rule of thumb is that if someone else has control of the device (and they're determined enough), they will always be able to monitor and modify all of your actions on the device.
We can (to a somewhat limited extent) get around this though! Two-factor authentication can be used to ensure that even if someone has your password, they cannot get into your account without also having access to a separate device (owned and controlled by you).
Keep in mind that once you log in, the computer ultimately has control over your interaction with the website, and as a result it could trivially see everything you do on the site and even modify your requests to the site (including not logging you out properly when you're done, and potentially changing your login details to lock you out of your own account).
This all depends on how worried you are about being attacked - if you're just logging into Facebook on a friends computer, you can probably trust that when you hit "Log Out", it actually logs you out. If you're logging into something really important, however, you may want to stick to devices you control.
Additionally, consider the following, via user TemporalWolf
Some websites allow for the generation of single-use one time passwords which sidesteps any sort of password logging... as you mentioned, this doesn't stop them from mucking with the now authenticated session.
In my practice, when I need extra security, I usually change the password on my phone (or another trusted device), then log in on the untrusted computer and after everything is done, change my password back (if possible).
This relies on the fact that changing password logs you out everywhere, for most websites. It's rather practical.
Alternatively, some websites offer a "session control" where you can force detach / terminate sessions if you want.
Besides what I said above, I also have a 128 GB portable SSD with me, formatted to GPT and has 3 partitions: the EFI System Partition, an Ubuntu, and a Windows To Go.
While software security wasn't my concern while creating this portable SSD, it is undoubtedly a good gadget to have for the purpose. Theoretically and practically, running operating systems on such self-made pieces of storage provides a fully trusted software environment, and can 100% eliminate any software thread on the foreign machine.
As others have answered, such gadgets usually aren't effective against hardware-based intrusion, for example a key logger (unless some stupid ones require drivers to work, then you can LOL). For those things, you have better check them by looking at the hardware ports. If there's anything malicious inside the crate, then you're out of luck.
But again, it's an interpersonal question. If you're logging in on your trusted friend's computer, and the friend isn't a techie, you probably need no more actions than launching the browser in incognito or InPrivate (Internet Explorer) mode.
If you encounter this situation regularly, try the following:
Create a Tails live USB stick. Tails is a Linux operating system designed to run off a USB, which can be booted on most computers. Using Tails means that you don't need to worry about any software that the hostile computer may have installed. Because you are completely bypassing it from boot.
Use the on-screen keyboard. You should cover this with your hand as you type, to prevent anyone from observing. This defends against hardware based key-loggers. Note that you don't need to worry about screen-recording software, because you are running Tails, which means that you have full control over all software running on the system.
As @Xen2050 mentioned in the comments, you can also achieve this with other operating systems which may be more user friendly. For instance, here are instructions for creating a live Ubuntu Linux USB on Windows, Mac or Ubuntu. And here are the instructions for accessing the on-screen keyboard on Ubuntu.
This method is vulnerable to the following:
If a website supports SQRL (https://www.grc.com/sqrl/sqrl.htm) then you have the option of having it display a QR code in the computer's browser that you let the SQRL app in your cell phone read, and thereby negotiate the authentication out of band.
SQRL is not yet widely adopted, but this precise use case was designed in from the beginning. (The other main use case is a SQRL app on your computer working in concert with the browser). In neither case is a password transmitted; SQRL uses Elliptic Curve public/private key technology to sign a nonce presented by the server to prove the user has the private key associated with the public key stored on the server in the user's account info.
EDIT: Because so few sites support SQRL, this is probably not a good answer as of Nov/Dec 2018, but it may be a good answer in the future. I don't think there is a secure way to log into a website on a computer under someone else's control (which may have a key/click-logger installed), which was one of the reasons SQRL was created in the first place. The out-of-band login approach, which does not rely upon the possibly-compromised computer to preserve a secret like a password, whether it be the specific form taken by the SQRL protocol or some competing scheme that uses the same general idea, is an essential component of any good answer.
It is a major PIA, but relatively secure with respect to protecting your password. Mostly because it is such a PIA that nobody is likely to put together what is needed to capture it. Which means the caveat about security through obscurity likely applies here...
I can think of a few techniques where I might be able to capture the password of someone using this technique, but none of them are what I would consider easy or straightforward.
Also worth noting that this technique was originally suggested as a counter measure by my CEH instructor. It is not perfect, but it is a semi-decent option that doesn't require much in the way of prior preparation.
There is one thing you can do on sites that allow it (Google being one): Use a "have" factor of authentication, such as TOTP or a mobile app to approve logins. You don't have to use 2FA - that can be your only factor. I have some of my non-critical servers set to allow password OR totp, so I can log in with one or the other, without needing both. While, as others pointed out, that doesn't make you completely secure (after you log in the attacker could disable input and do whatever they want now that you're logged in), it prevents disclosing any passwords.
If you need to login using someone else's computer, there is no certain way to know for certain if there is any form of spying software. Even if it is someone you trust, they could be infected with a virus or a similar nefarious device, and it can be hard to impossible to know if it is infected. Always assume that a nefarious entity will still be able to view/access anything that happens on the computer. Here are a few ways you can try to mitigate the risks.
There is no possible way to ensure that the person's OS is not compromised. You can look at the running processes, examine call stacks, network requests or anything, but spyware programs can be extremely well disguised. The best possible solution is to boot from a live USB stick using a linux distribution such as Ubuntu, puppy linux or Kali linux. This means that you should have full control of the software running on the computer, although a determined hacker could insert malicious code into the BIOS or bootloader of the computer, changing the actual code of the operating system.
Mitigation of Hardware based vulnerabilities
Software methods of decreasing the risk
The last thing is that you should, if possible, temporarily change your password (maybe using your phone) while you login using that computer, then change it back afterwards, so if the password is compromised, it will not be usable after it is changed back.
The best way to protect yourself is to tell the person that you are not comfortable entering your password at their computer.
If you have probable cause or general paranoia then do not perform unsafe actions.
Expecting to thoroughly detect and/or mitigate all threat models in a matter of seconds is ludicrous.
What is the threat model anyways?
You don't specify whether you need to login via someone's computer because you:
The optimal way of addressing these concerns is, in the reverse order:
Case 4. Bring your laptop/phone/tablet and use 3G/4G connection to access the internet. Done.
Case 3. Bring your laptop, properly secure it (antivirus, firewall, etc), plug it into their network. Done.
Case 2. Inspect their hardware for any hardware loggers, boot your own OS (some kind of live distribution). If you missed the hardware logger, you have the problem.
Case 1. Also helps with Case 2.
a) Require Administrator/root access.
b) Enable firewall, set it to paranoidly strict mode, allow only connections to your target server.
c) Change your access password via your 3G/4G phone to something temporary,
d) Access the server, use 2FA
e) delete the traces (cookies, any temporary files that could hide credentials, unique IDs,tc)
f) Change password back via your 3G/4G phone
g) Set the firewall back to normal.
Now firewall may be compromised as well by a rootkit, so for more paranoid, or in case you don't get Admin/root access:
a) Build your custom router using Raspberry Pi or similar device, add additional ethernet port using Ethernet2USB adapter. (of course, really security conscious pro would have Linux on their laptop anyway, so just add Ethernet2USB port and proceed without Raspberry.
b) Plug their computer into your Raspberry, get the MAC address, clone it to the other (outbound) side.
c) Set up strict routing and firewall on the Linux, allow only access to your server, and route one NIC to another.
d) Set up MITM sniffing and install your certificate to your server on their machine. Your certificate is MITM certificate, the fake one you generated!
e) Proceed as in previously described in 1c) and on.
f) Log any bloody byte that traverses your mini router so you can confront them if they try something nasty.
The reasoning behind this suggestion is that the host computer probably does not have the full suite of tools to attack your account. Keylogger will log the keys to your temporary password, but will be unable to forward the data to the bad guy sitting in the other room. If it does and tries to hack your server, you will have any hack attempt logged in plaintext, any you can either confront them or undo the damage (they changed the plaintext, but you have logged the change!). Note hat only your server will be available to their computer in the critical time, so either their computer tries hacking solo, or nothing will happen.
I would appreciate feedback on that route, if I perhaps missed something.
In theory, if the site doesn't provide you a better way to do this, there is still a way: login on a device that is under your control, and transfer the session cookie you receive from that device to the untrusted computer. This will allow the untrusted computer to perform any operation you can perform on the site once logged in, but unless the site has fatally bad security design, it will not allow the untrusted computer to change your password, change the email address associated with the account, or perform other account-takeover operations.
Once you're done, you can use the trusted device you control to log out its session cookie (which you copied from it) by performing the logout operation there, or perform a "logout all devices" operation if the site provides such a feature.
Note that under this scheme, your password is never entered on the untrusted computer, and thereby it has no means of recording/capturing it. At best it can capture the session cookie, which you will invalidate by logging out using the trusted device once you're done.
If you trust that person, go ahead and use their computer. Consider creating a separate browser profile which you can wipe clean after you're done without erasing that person's cookies / settings / whatever. Take note of any attachments you download so that you can remove these as well. Don't just open attached files, unless you want to play detective figuring out which of the possible "temp" locations was used to store them. And avoid manipulating any sensitive data which is not related to the purpose forcing you to use someone else's computer.
If you don't trust the person, don't use their computer. There's no way of securing an unknown computer 100%, and even less so without doing things which will make the other person suspect that you're trying to hack them. At which point you will probably be denied to use their computer anyway.
Although there are a number of good and awesome answers, i believe this radical "answer" is missing out:
If you are concerned about security, you probably use a password manager as well. I always generate a random and very difficult password. On other computers I probably don't have the software nor the file where my passwords are stored in (I use keepass). I do have this file stored in a cloud solution but on logging in it also requires a separate file which I only have locally on my trusted devices.
So you might understand what hassle I have to go through before I am actually logged in on the other untrusted device. Which actually prevents me from doing so in the first place.
So if I am forced to login: "I don't know my password".
When you suspect the system is keylogged you would need to be able to interrupt that process to do what you are asking.
That might be a visible process though - so if it's mission critical try finding that process or creating another user account with an encrypted terminal in a sandbox to see if you can avoid logging that way - i.e. Linux with encrypted home folder & swap as an example.
