What Are the Types and Tools of Packet Sniffing Attacks?

With more people working remotely and students attending school from home due to the pandemic, sniffing attack risks have become more emergent. As a result, sniffing attacks have gained more popularity among cybercriminals.

There is a need to work from a secure network to protect sensitive information. To protect yourself from this risk, educate yourself about sniffing attacks. Learn about the different types and how to prevent them.

What Is a Sniffing Attack?

A sniffing attack is the theft or interception of data packets, where network traffic is captured using specialized tools. These tools are known as packet sniffers. Data packets carry a wealth of information, such as incoming and outgoing traffic. A sniffing attack involves illegally extracting the unencrypted data from this traffic.

What Is a Packet Sniffing Attack?

A packet sniffing attack specifically refers to the interception and analysis of data packets traveling across a network. These packets, which include essential data like login credentials, personal information, and communication content, are captured using packet sniffing tools. If the data within these packets is not encrypted, attackers can easily extract and read the information in plain text. Packet sniffing attacks can be both active, involving direct manipulation of the network, and passive, where the attacker silently monitors the traffic without detection.

How a Packet Sniffing Attack Works

In a packet sniffing attack, an attacker uses a packet sniffer tool to capture and analyze data packets as they traverse the network. These tools can be software or hardware-based and allow the attacker to view the contents of the packets. If the packets are unencrypted, the information is visible in plain text, making it easy for attackers to steal sensitive information like passwords and financial details. This type of attack can be executed in either a passive or active manner, depending on whether the attacker interacts with the network.

History of Sniffing Attacks

Packet sniffing started as a tool for IT professionals to monitor and maintain network security. Initially, these tools were used legally for purposes like troubleshooting, analyzing network traffic, and ensuring the overall health of network systems. However, over time, hackers began exploiting these tools for malicious purposes, leading to the development of illegal sniffing attacks.

Legal and Ethical Uses of Sniffing Tools

Initially, packet sniffers were only used by IT professionals and network personnel. This was for legal purposes such as optimizing network security. Examples include monitoring network traffic and security analysis.

Here is an in-depth look at the positive uses of packet sniffers:

• Network administrators use it to check the health and security of a network system. By monitoring the network, security experts help test the encryption status of the HTTPS connection.
• Cyber experts can use it to examine the traffic of plain text passwords and usernames to encrypt them.
• It is an excellent tool for troubleshooting and diagnosing network issues. This is necessary to keep network systems healthy and secure.
• Packet sniffing helps resolve misconfigurations of a network system. It also ensures the perfect network route for DNS requests.

Illegal and Unethical Uses of Sniffing Tools

Unfortunately, hackers found an opportunity to use packet sniffers for criminal purposes. Criminals use sniffing to steal information from email records or web traffic. As long as the network is unsecure, attackers will be able to steal your data.

Here are a few aspects of illegal sniffing tool uses:

• They can use it to steal sensitive information. These may include client data such as phone numbers, passwords, and banking data.
• They may use it to commit identity theft.
• It helps them use stolen data for fraud.
• Hackers may use it for DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks or man-in-the-middle (MITM) attacks.

Types of Sniffing Tools

Sniffing attacks are easy and efficient due to packet sniffing tools. Here are some sniffing tools that help them achieve these results.

1. Wireshark is one of the most commonly used packet sniffing tools. The packet sniffing tool offers various features including assisting and monitoring the packet sniffing process.
2. Tcpdump is a command-line tool used to analyze packets. Using Tcpdump, you can intercept and monitor TCP/IP addresses across networks. Network specialists use Tcpdump as a tool to identify and fix network issues.
3. NetWitness NextGen is a hardware-based sniffing resource. This tool inspects and monitors all the traffic of a network system. Law enforcement agencies use this tool.
4. dSniff is a suite of sniffing tools. This tool performs packet sniffing using different protocols. It is usually used to snatch personal information.
5. BetterCAP is a powerful tool that hackers can use to perform MITM attacks. It can also manipulate HTTP, HTTPS, and TCP traffic. This tool helps force a network to believe the hacker's device is the router. Thus, when information is sent to or from the victim, it goes through the hacker's device.
6. WinDump is a Windows version of Tcpdump. It allows its users to watch, diagnose, and record network traffic. With extensive filtering, it can also display precise information.
7. Like BetterCAP, Ettercap aids in performing man-in-the-middle attacks. However, this tool can also perform network protocol analysis and security auditing. It runs on various Unix-like operating systems. These include Linux, Microsoft Windows, and Mac OS X.

Types of Sniffing Attacks

It is essential to understand how sniffing attacks differ. Being knowledgeable in this will help you to identify and prevent them. There are two common types of sniffing attacks; active and passive. They vary widely in how they execute.

1. Active Sniffing

This type of sniffing attack seizes data packets by manipulating switch-based networks. A switch is a device that connects two network endpoints. The switch is used to forward data to specific ports. The network does this by using the port's media access control (MAC) address.

Attackers flood the network with traffic. Some examples of active sniffing include MAC flooding, ARP (address resolution protocol) spoofing, and DNS (Domain Name Servers) spoofing.

2. Passive Sniffing

Passive sniffing affects wireless networks and hubs. Hackers use MAC addresses to locate the endpoints where the data is headed. Unlike active sniffing, they do not communicate with the target. This makes it challenging to detect passive packet sniffers.

How to Prevent Sniffing Attacks?

A sniffing attack doesn't only steal sensitive data. Sniffing is frequently used to commit identity theft. Fortunately, there are measures you can take to prevent these attacks.

1. Do Not Use Unsecured Networks

A sniffing attack may occur when connecting to unsecured Wi-Fi networks. This is because attackers install packet sniffers into vulnerable networks. Cybercriminals can use this opportunity to steal bank data. This may include stealing the user's credit card information to make unauthorized purchases.

Attackers are also capable of making fake-free public Wi-Fi. Avoid using free public Wi-Fi. You can never be sure that it is safe. Always use VPN services when connecting to untrusted Wi-Fi networks.

2. Use a VPN

Encrypt your online activities and your data by using a VPN (virtual private network). This will enhance your security and make it hard for hackers to steal your data. In addition, virtual data rooms for due diligence provide a secure platform for confidential document sharing during business transactions. With VPNs protecting your information and virtual data rooms safeguarding sensitive documents, your data remains confidential and secure.

3. Scan and Monitor Your Network

This is a vital strategy to optimize your network environment. It will also help you identify the presence of sniffing attacks and other issues that observability can solve. Observability tools can help detect malicious activity and alert unauthorized access attempts, allowing you to quickly address and resolve the issue. Your organization or business needs to have a qualified team of ethical hackers and network administrators.

They should be able to penetrate, scan, and monitor the systems. You must check it periodically to identify network contingencies. This ensures that the business's networks are always safe.

4. Upgrade Your Security Software

Antivirus tools can provide you with around-the-clock protection. They protect you from viruses, malware, spyware, and other security threats. This can also help you get rid of viruses already on the system.

5. Use a Secured Protocol

You should always use a secured network protocol to avoid packet sniffing. You can never be too safe. If you already use a VPN, add additional protection such as extensions or add-ons in your browser.

6. Browse With Caution

Avoid unencrypted websites. When you browse unencrypted websites, you risk packet sniffing attacks. Also, you should remember to avoid unusual pop-ups and spam emails. You also should never download any content from non-reputed sites.

Encountering a sniffing attack is frustrating. It threatens your security and sensitive information such as email records. So, it is essential to put measures to block these attackers. Once your security system detects them, they can be easily quarantined.

FAQ

What Is a Sniffing Attack?

A sniffing attack is a method used by cybercriminals to intercept and steal data packets as they travel across a network. By using packet sniffing tools, attackers can capture and analyze unencrypted information, potentially accessing sensitive data like passwords and financial details.

What Is a Packet Sniffing Attack?

A packet sniffing attack specifically refers to the process of intercepting and analyzing data packets to extract valuable information. This attack can be carried out in either an active or passive manner, depending on whether the attacker interacts with the network or simply listens to the traffic.

How Does a Packet Sniffing Attack Work?

A packet sniffing attack works by using a packet sniffer tool to capture the data packets that travel across a network. If the data is unencrypted, the attacker can read it in plain text. The attack can be executed actively, by manipulating the network, or passively, by monitoring the network traffic without detection.

Which Classification of Attack Type Does Packet Sniffing Fall Under?

Packet sniffing attacks can be classified into two types: active and passive. Active sniffing involves direct interaction with the network to capture data packets, while passive sniffing involves silently monitoring the network traffic without altering it.