What is cyber security?
Security specialists do their work with the help of technology, strategies, and policies to secure systems, networks, programs, devices, and data against cyberattacks or hackers. Cybersecurity aims to control the danger of internet attacks and illegal use of systems, networks, and technology. Cybersecurity is required for everyone who uses the internet. Because most cyberattacks operate remotely and target general problems rather than specific websites or businesses. In this article let us know how to prevent password sniffing in cyber security and avoid threats from cyber criminals. Let’s get started.
What is Sniffing?
The collection of information or data through a network is called sniffing. The data is collected through a wired or wireless network. A packet analyzer is a software program used to collect the data, and it can also read the collected data. It is the common program used for sniffing. Wireless sniffing is hard to identify because it can be operated anywhere without connecting their systems to the network.
Sniffing is divided into two categories
Active sniffing
Active sniffing is the process of sniffing in the switch. A switch is a point-to-point network. The switch manages the transfer of information between its ports by constantly tracking the MAC address on each port, allowing it to send data only to the intended destination. To capture traffic between targets, sniffers must actively insert traffic into the LAN.
Passive sniffing
Passive sniffing is the process of sniffing through the hub. The hub is the central connecting device for the network. So any data that is passed through the hub can be seen by all the machines that are connected through that network. Sniffier control at the data link layer of the network. If any data is sent through the local area network, the data is sent to all the systems that are connected to the LAN. The attackers will wait for the data to be sent from one user to another user to collect that data. This process is known as passive sniffing.
Sniffing Attack
A sniffing attack is a network attack in which the attacker captures the data as they are transmitted through the network. These attacks can hack private data like passwords, bank details, credit card numbers, and personal communications. Networks sharing the same media, like wireless networks or Ethernet cables, are the chances for sniffing attacks. Systems that are connected to the same networks know the data packets sent through that network. With the help of a packet sniffer, the attacker can observe all the information, such as passwords that are not protected and other confidential and sensitive data.
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Types of Password sniffing in Cyber Security
Sniffing is the term to catch network traffic to obtain information that can be used to attack bugs in ethical hacking.
Web password sniffing
The process of collecting passwords from many networks is known as web password sniffing. An ethical hacker knows the information about passwords that are exchanged over networks. These were transmitted through sniffing the network traffic.
LAN sniffing
This technique traces data on a LAN. A packet sniffer enables an ethical hacker to view all the data that every device on the network transfers and receives. Network difficulties that are identified or determine which devices are interacting with each other.
Protocol sniffing
Protocol sniffing and LAN sniffing are the same, but protocol sniffing concentrates on the protocols of the connected device. With the help of software, packet sniffing captures several types of data.
ARP Sniffing
ARP stands for Address Resolution Protocol, and it is an architecture that links IP addresses to physical addresses. By capturing ARP traffic, an ethical hacker can identify which IP addresses are allocated to which physical locations. This might help you gain data regarding network connections
Password sniffing
A cyber security attack called password sniffing involves capturing data packets to obtain login details and passwords. A software application is used to work. It will observe and note the passwords from data packets. The attacker successfully gets passwords using a password-cracking program. This is the type of man-in-the-middle cyberattack. The hacker is the man in the middle of your system and connected network. Now the communication between two numbers is observed by the hacker. When one person sends the information to another, the hacker can see that information. However, password sniffers are not always used with selfish intentions. IT professionals commonly use them to identify poor applications transmitting sensitive data unprotected through the local area network. IT professionals know that sometimes users download and install dangerous software in their environment; installing a passive password sniffer on company networks to identify weak apps is one suitable application of a password sniffer.
How to prevent Password Sniffing in Cyber Security
Virtual private networks (VPN), SSL, or TLS are the tools used to protect information and data from password sniffing in Cyber Security. Encryption makes it harder for a hacker to access your data.
Password sniffing is prevented by using proper connection protocol. HTTP and HTTPS are the two protocols used for remote databases. In previous times, HTTP was used, but now HTTPS is in function. HTTPS is the same network as HTTP, but it includes encryption technologies. It will encrypt your data, preventing anyone other than the receiving party, such as the database server, from reading it. The hacker cannot decode your personal information if it is encrypted.
Conclusion
Password sniffing was done in both positive and negative ways. Ethical hackers hack passwords and other information for good purposes, but some people negatively use this hacking for their selfish intentions. It is important to keep our data safe and secure. There are some tools and applications available for the prevention of password sniffing.
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