Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) Attacks
- What it is: A type of cyberattack where an attacker secretly intercepts and potentially alters the communication between two parties who believe they are 1 communicating directly with each other. The attacker positions themselves between 2 the sender and the receiver, acting as a relay without either party’s knowledge.
How it works: MitM attacks can be carried out through various techniques. ARP spoofing on a local network can redirect traffic through the attacker’s machine. DNS spoofing can redirect a user to a malicious website that looks identical to the intended one. SSL stripping downgrades an HTTPS connection to HTTP, allowing the attacker to intercept traffic in plain text. Wi-Fi eavesdropping involves capturing network traffic on unsecured or poorly secured Wi-Fi networks. Attackers can then passively eavesdrop on the communication to steal sensitive information or actively manipulate the data being exchanged, potentially injecting malicious content or altering transactions.
Example with key data: A common scenario involves a user connecting to a public Wi-Fi hotspot. An attacker on the same network can use tools to perform ARP spoofing, effectively making the user’s device believe the attacker’s machine is the default gateway. As a result, all the user’s network traffic is routed through the attacker’s device before reaching its intended destination. The attacker can then intercept sensitive information like login credentials, credit card details, or personal messages. If SSL stripping is also employed, even HTTPS connections can be compromised. The key data here is the lack of encryption or the ability to downgrade encryption, allowing the attacker to view or modify the communication in transit without the user or the server being aware of the interception.