ARP Poisoning and MITM Attacks

ARP Poisoning Attacks: Man-in-the-Middle (MITM)

What is a Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) Attack?

• A type of attack where an attacker intercepts and alters communication between two parties
• The attacker positions themselves between the two parties, making it seem like a normal communication

How ARP Poisoning Enables MITM Attacks

• ARP poisoning allows an attacker to spoof the IP address of a legitimate device on the network
• The attacker sends fake ARP responses to associate their own MAC address with the IP address of the legitimate device
• This causes the target device to send packets intended for the legitimate device to the attacker's device instead

Steps Involved in an ARP Poisoning MITM Attack

1. ARP poisoning: The attacker sends fake ARP responses to associate their own MAC address with the IP address of the legitimate device.
2. Traffic redirection: The target device sends packets intended for the legitimate device to the attacker's device instead.
3. Packet sniffing: The attacker intercepts and analyzes the packets to gather sensitive information.
4. Packet modification: The attacker can modify the packets to inject malware, steal sensitive data, or disrupt communication.

Consequences of ARP Poisoning MITM Attacks

• Unauthorization access: Attackers can gain unauthorized access to sensitive data and systems.
• Data manipulation: Attackers can modify data in transit, leading to data breaches or disruptions.
• Network instability: ARP poisoning can cause network instability, slow down traffic, and even lead to network crashes.

Prevention and Mitigation Strategies

• Implementing ARP spoofing detection tools: Tools that detect and alert on ARP spoofing attempts.
• Using static ARP entries: Configuring static ARP entries to prevent ARP poisoning.
• Segmenting the network: Segmenting the network into smaller, isolated zones to limit the attack surface.
• Using encryption: Encrypting data in transit to prevent packet sniffing and modification.

Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) Attacks

• A type of attack where an attacker intercepts and alters communication between two parties, positioning themselves between the two parties, making it seem like a normal communication.

ARP Poisoning and MITM Attacks

• ARP poisoning allows an attacker to spoof the IP address of a legitimate device on the network.
• The attacker sends fake ARP responses to associate their own MAC address with the IP address of the legitimate device.
• This causes the target device to send packets intended for the legitimate device to the attacker's device instead.

Steps Involved in an ARP Poisoning MITM Attack

• The attacker sends fake ARP responses to associate their own MAC address with the IP address of the legitimate device.
• The target device sends packets intended for the legitimate device to the attacker's device instead.
• The attacker intercepts and analyzes the packets to gather sensitive information.
• The attacker can modify the packets to inject malware, steal sensitive data, or disrupt communication.

Consequences of ARP Poisoning MITM Attacks

• Attackers can gain unauthorized access to sensitive data and systems.
• Attackers can modify data in transit, leading to data breaches or disruptions.
• ARP poisoning can cause network instability, slow down traffic, and even lead to network crashes.

Prevention and Mitigation Strategies

• Implementing ARP spoofing detection tools to detect and alert on ARP spoofing attempts.
• Configuring static ARP entries to prevent ARP poisoning.
• Segmenting the network into smaller, isolated zones to limit the attack surface.
• Encrypting data in transit to prevent packet sniffing and modification.