ARP Spoofing or ARP Poisoning

ARP spoofing, also known as ARP poisoning, is a type of cyber attack in which an attacker sends falsified Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) messages over a local area network (LAN). The goal of ARP spoofing is to associate the attacker's MAC address with the IP address of a legitimate network device (such as a router, gateway, or another host) on the same network segment. This allows the attacker to intercept, modify, or redirect network traffic intended for the targeted device.

ARP spoofing works in such way:

1. ARP Request: When a device needs to communicate with another device on the same network, it sends out an ARP request broadcast packet to determine the MAC address associated with the destination IP address.

2. ARP Reply: The device with the corresponding IP address specified in the ARP request responds with an ARP reply packet, providing its MAC address.

3. ARP Spoofing: The attacker sends falsified ARP reply packets, claiming to be the legitimate device with the target IP address. These ARP reply packets contain the MAC address of the attacker's device instead of the legitimate MAC address.

4. ARP Cache Poisoning: Once the attacker's MAC address is associated with the target IP address in the ARP caches of other devices on the network, network traffic intended for the target device is redirected to the attacker's device.

5. Traffic Interception or Modification: The attacker can intercept, modify, or redirect network traffic passing through their device. This allows the attacker to eavesdrop on communications, steal sensitive information, perform man-in-the-middle (MITM) attacks, or disrupt network communication.

ARP spoofing attacks pose significant security risks to network environments, as they can lead to unauthorized access, data theft, network disruption, and the compromise of sensitive information. To mitigate the risks associated with ARP spoofing, network administrators can implement various countermeasures, such as:

• Using ARP spoofing detection and prevention tools
• Implementing network segmentation and access controls
• Enabling port security features on network switches
• Configuring static ARP entries or ARP cache timeout settings
• Monitoring and auditing ARP traffic for anomalies
• Educating users about the risks of ARP spoofing and practicing good network security hygiene