ARP Spoofing, also known as ARP Poisoning, is a type of cyber attack executed through the manipulation of the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP). It is classified as a Man in the Middle (MitM) attack, where the attacker intercepts and potentially alters the communication between two networked devices without their knowledge. This attack exploits the lack of authentication in the ARP protocol, enabling attackers to deceive network devices about the true MAC address of an IP address on the network.
The process of ARP spoofing involves several steps:
- Network Access: Initially, the attacker must gain access to the target network. Once inside, they scan the network to identify the IP addresses of devices, typically focusing on a workstation (like a user’s computer) and a router.
- Forging ARP Responses: Using a spoofing tool (e.g., Arpspoof or Driftnet), the attacker sends out forged ARP responses. These responses falsely claim that the attacker’s MAC address corresponds to the IP addresses of the targeted devices, such as the workstation and the router.
- Deceiving Devices: Both the router and the workstation are tricked into believing that the attacker’s machine is the intended communication partner. Consequently, they update their ARP cache with the attacker’s MAC address.
- Interception: From this point, the attacker secretly becomes the intermediary in all communications between the two devices. This position allows the attacker to eavesdrop, intercept, or alter the data being transmitted.
The consequences of a successful ARP spoofing attack are significant:
- Data Interception: The attacker can monitor and capture data packets passing through the network, posing a risk to sensitive information, especially if it is unencrypted.
- Session Hijacking: By acquiring session IDs, the attacker can gain unauthorized access to user accounts and services that the victim is logged into.
- Data Alteration: The attacker can modify the data being sent, potentially injecting malware or redirecting users to malicious sites.
- DDoS Attacks: In a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) scenario, the attacker can redirect a large volume of network traffic to overwhelm a server or network resource, causing service disruption.
ARP spoofing underscores the need for robust network security measures, including the use of encrypted protocols like HTTPS, vigilant monitoring of network traffic, and the implementation of security tools that can detect and mitigate such attacks.