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Types of Wireless Network Attacks

19.06.2020 Read
Types of Wireless Network Attacks

Wireless networks have become an integral part of how we conduct our businesses. They ease many processes and help us get rid of the clutter caused by hundreds of wires yet keeping wireless networks safe poses some challenges.

Wireless technologies offer convenient solutions to our needs. They are practical and fast, moreover they set us free of the clutter caused by wires and cables. On the other hand, it is no secret that wireless networks are more vulnerable to attacks and intruders. In this article, we will explain types of wireless network attacks and how you can protect your organization from them.

What is a wireless network attack?

With the widespread use of internet, we are able to conduct our business processes online and without being tied down by cables and wires. Wireless networks are one of the relatively new technologies brought to our lives by the internet technologies. They are easy to use, facilitate our business processes and mobilize our businesses. On the downside, wireless networks are much more vulnerable to attacks and intruders.

Commonly known as wireless network attacks, penetration and intrusion acts that target wireless networks pose serious threats. Wireless network attacks aim to capture the information sent across the network and/or intrude with the traffic of information.

Packet Sniffing

Networks are designed to facilitate and accelerate the traffic of information. In order to achieve this goal, the information is sent in packets across both wired and wireless networks. Due to the nature of wireless networks, these packets are sent through the air. As a result, it is very easy to capture them.

A great deal of traffic is sent through wireless networks, such as RTP, SNMP or HTTP. The common feature of these is the fact that they are in plain text. Which means, one can easily read them with the help of free access tools like Wireshark. As a result, someone with malicious intentions can simply steal your passwords and similar sensitive information.

If you want to protect your wireless network against packet sniffing, you should invest in encryption solutions.

Rouge Access Point

Rouge access point refers to any unauthorized access point (AP) on a network. It can be created by an attacker or even a misinformed employee. Moreover, rouge APs make the entire network vulnerable to DoS attacks, packet captures, ARP poisoning and more.

You can use network access controls and network access protocols or introduce authentication processes to protect your organization.

Jamming

Jamming (also known as network interference) aims to disrupt the network. Due to the wireless features, interference is almost unavoidable. A pair of Bluetooth headphones or even a microwave oven can cause mild interference. Most of the time, ill intended intruders combine jamming techniques with other methods like evil twinning. If you want to protect your organization, you should invest in a spectrum analyser, boosting the power of existing access points or using different frequencies.

Evil Twinning

One of the most popular methods employed by wireless network attackers is creating an evil twin. In other words, attackers get a wireless access point and configure it as the existing network. This way, the ‘evil’ access point cannot be distinguished from actual access points.

One of the easiest ways to stop evil twins from stealing the information of your organization is opting for data encryption, so that even if an intruder successfully creates an evil twin they cannot read your data.

If you would like to learn more about how you can protect your organization from cyber attackers, contact us! We offer state of the art SIEM and SOAR solutions that will keep your organization safe from malicious attacks of all kinds.

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