Man-in-the-Middle Attack- A frequent attack method is a man-in-the-middle (MITM) attack, in which hackers eavesdrop on an active communication channel between two users. As the name implies, the attackers set up shop in order to intercept communications and steal vital information.
Important Points to Remember
- Hackers eavesdrop on active communication channels between two users in MITM attacks in order to steal confidential information.
- The most typical approach of carrying out the attack is to make two victims believe they are conversing with each other while the attackers intercept all they say.
- Man-in-the-middle attacks are carried out via techniques such as sniffer and session hijacking.
- DNS spoofing and ARP spoofing are the most prevalent man-in-the-middle attacks.
What is a Man-in-the-Middle Attack and How Does It Work?
The most frequent way to carry out a man-in-the-middle attack is for the attacker to convince each victim that they are interacting with one another. In a sense, they are handing over their information to the assailant.
Mary and Paul are the targets in this comparison, while Eve is the assailant. Eve wants to listen in on the conversation without being noticed, so she’ll convince Mary that she’s Paul and fool Paul into thinking she’s Mary. The name “man-in-the-middle assault” comes from the fact that both targets will give their information without realising it.
Man-in-the-Middle Attacks and the Methods Used to Carry Them Out
Man-in-the-middle attacks are carried out in the following ways:
Sniffing
Attackers can inspect data traffic using a variety of methods for capturing data packets. Cyber adversaries can discover secret packets, such as data traffic addressed to a certain host, using the devices’ monitoring capabilities. Attackers can eavesdrop on communication and steal vital information once the tools sniff the packets.
Session Hijacking
Session hijacking is a type of attack in which a hacker takes control of an active web session. Instead of forcing you to enter your credentials every time you log in to a web site, the login mechanism generates a random temporary session token that you can use in subsequent logins.
Sniffing methods can be used by cybercriminals to detect which communication contains sensitive information and the user’s session token. The attacker can then impersonate the user and send queries to the web server, which will answer as if it were the actual user.
SSL Stripping
DNS spoofing and ARP attackers are examples of threats that HTTPS protects users from. As a result, cyber adversaries examine and intercept data packets in a network using SSL stripping methods. The attackers then alter the HTTPS address requests and redirect them to a similar HTTP location. The user is forced to request a server without encryption, allowing the hackers to read the requests and responses in plain text.
Packet Injection
Attackers can utilise their monitoring capabilities to introduce destructive data packets into a network communication stream while employing data packet capture tools. Attackers disguise harmful packets in genuine data to make them appear secure. Before injecting the malicious packets, the hackers must sniff the desired packets.
Common Man-in-the-Middle Attacks
DNS Spoofing
DNS spoofing is an attack tactic in which a hostile cyber actor sends a target host distorted DNS cache data. After then, the tampered DNS cache information tries to speak with another host using the trusted domain name.
As a result, the victim divulges personal information without realising it is being sent directly to the attacker. The victims send sensitive data to a trustworthy domain, but not to the intended recipient.
ARP Spoofing
The abbreviation ARP stands for Address Resolution Protocol. Its job is to translate IP addresses into actual MAC addresses on a network. When a host requests to interact with another host with a certain IP address, the request is routed through the ARP cache, which converts the IP address into a MAC address.
Attackers are now responding to host queries using their MAC addresses. The initial step is to insert certain packets in a specific location in order to sniff an active communication between two hosts. ARP spoofing attacks are used by the attackers to get access to sensitive information such as session token exchanges.
How To Detect a Man-in-the-Middle Attack
Implementing tamper detection systems is one of the most effective ways to identify a man-in-the-middle assault. When the systems detect odd network behaviour or patterns, they send an alert to the network administrator.
You should also examine your network on a regular basis to see if there are any indicators of data or communication interceptions. Without active scanning, you may not be able to notice a man-in-the-middle assault until it is too late.
Best Practices for Protecting Yourself Against Man-in-the-Middle Attacks
Robust Wi-Fi Encryption
Wi-Fi access points with robust WAP/WEP encryption are an effective control for preventing unwanted users from joining to the network. Brute-force assaults, illegal access, and a man-in-the-middle attack are all possible with wireless access points that lack adequate encryption techniques.
VPN
In an unsafe network, a VPN (virtual private network) provides users with a secure network for transferring critical information. VPNs use key-based encryption, which requires both hosts to exchange the correct pair of keys in order to access shared data. It guards against illegal access or interception of your communications.
Health Router Login Credentials
Because default credentials are easy to guess, it’s always a good idea to alter the default router login. It’s also critical to generate secure credentials that can’t be readily hacked. In order to redirect the victim’s DNS server to a malicious server, attackers target routers with weak credentials. They may even devise a malicious router application that routes all traffic to a remote site.
