Network Sniffers
A wireless network has been widely in use due to the efficiency of its applications in different areas where the cabling networking set up is either challenging or is more expensive. A Wide Area Networks (WANs) is a method of wireless distribution between two or more devices which often includes an Access Point to the internet and have a high radio frequency [5]. They are found to support large number of devices as compared to the cable Local Area Networks (LANs). The wireless connected devices are also able to work in the areas of cabling through the Ethernet connections. Due to the ease of connecting to the other nodes and devices without connecting any other device physically, the networks are considered more prone to the problem of information security [10]. Due to this problem, more devices have been designed to help prevent the information leaks. This report was analyzed from the Westfield Garden City shopping.
Networks sniffing tools are considered in keeping track of Wireless Local Area Networks [8]. It is not sufficient to guarantee that there are no security threats will get into a network. This is evidenced by the fact that an employee or a worker in business may illegally need to access the information they are not allowed from the business system. The employer is, therefore, able to alter and configure the setting of the network access point and access the data. However, with the presence of the network sniffer tools, this challenge can be mitigated. These sniffing tools play a vital role in keeping all the information concerning the time the network node was accessed and the data accessed. With all the knowledge in the network set up and its structure, it, therefore, becomes a challenge for illegal access to the data by an intruder. This keeps track of the network even without a technician physically observing the network.
For a wireless network, the sniffing tools should not be sophisticated as they perform their duties by sniffing TCP/IP packets. These sniffing tools track the flow of information and keep the log of the information in screenshots so that a review can be easily done to identify if an intruder accessed the information [12]. Some of these tools also provide alarms when an unauthorized person tries to access the data in a hidden IP address. Examples of these snipping tools and their demo screenshots include:
Acrylic Sniffing tool
Acrylic sniffing tools is a Wi-Fi analysis and visualization tool that helps in identifying, diagnosing and troubleshooting problems [3]. After the selection of the Wi-Fi- protection, the tool starts by capturing all the Wi-Fi capable tools and the access point. The access point is displayed in the upper section during the capture. At the bottom, information such as the visualization charts for access points, signal strength level and any relevant information related to the network is accessed. The tool has some complexity in usage as it requires a well-trained network technician. Due to its MAC support, it shows the overall network quality by rating which is different from the other tools. It moreover has the following features:
- SSID
- MAC Address
- RSSI
- Chan
- Width
- Max rate
- WPA and WPA2
- Password
- Vendor
- It is freely accessed online
- It provides security information for the network.
Disadvantage
- The tool is complex in use.
This is a Microsoft Windows password recovery tools [9]. It uses the network packet sniffing in recovering a different kind of password. It is maintained by Sean Babcock and the Massimiliano Montoro and its operations are less complex. It has the ability for password recovery which is different from other tools such as the acrylic sniffing tool which does not play any role in password recovery. Most of its features are also different from other sniffing tools. It has the following features:
- Remote Registry
- Service Manager
- LSA Secrets Dumper
- Routing Protocol Monitors
- APR (ARP Poison Routing)
- Dial-up Password Decoder
- Protected Storage Password Manager
- SID Scanner
Advantages
- Password crack can be done through different methods
- The tool is completely free
- The password recovery is very fast
Disadvantage
- A separate Rainbow Table bust is downloaded from other online sources.
- Unlike other password recovery tools, the program must be installed on a hard drive.
The AirMagnet tool helps in administrate function in an enterprise. It offers services such as the testing and diagnostics of the network connectivity problems [11]. It also diagnosis for the signal multipath and device conflicts troubles. The usage of the tool is more complex due to its features which requires a specialized individual. It has the following features:
- 11ac deployments
- network design verification
- AMWFAP 9
- RF spectrum analysis
- outdoor surveys
- voice readiness verification
- multi-floor deployments
- Integration with WLAN Infrastructure Vendors
Advantages
- Identifying the number of devices connected to the network is easy.
- It helps in network problem diagnosis.
Disadvantages
- The tool is not freely accessed online for the installation. Unless the demo which has some disabled features. The full version with all the functioning features is costly to download and install.
- Its usage is complex.
It is a free source packet analyzer used in networking for analysis, troubleshooting and communication protocol development [1]. It implements its user interface by the use of Qt widget toolkit. The tool is less complex in its usage as it has few features as compared to other sniffing tools such as the AirMagnet. It has the following features:
- Display filter
- Offline analysis
- Live capture
- Multi-platform
- Rich VoIP analysis
- Standard three pane packet browser.
Advantages
- It is a free software
- It is available for multiple platforms
Disadvantages
- It is only capable of gathering information from network but not sending
- Does not offer notification for the intruders in the network.
In the survey for the Wireless networks available in the shopping center, the Netspot sniffing tool was used. For each specific location of the area, the tools offer more than ten Access point. The access points in the three different locations were captured in the screenshot as shown below.
- SSIDs
- Channels
- Bandwidth
- Security protocol used
- Mode
- Signal strength
- Devices that have been connected to the Wireless access point
Any information relevant to the analysis of the network is also available in the tool. The signal strength of the networks at any point changes with the alteration of the location [6].
Cain and Abel sniffing tool
The below result shows the network analysis at different locations. The selected wireless Network Service Set Identifiers (SSID) signals are represented by the waves.
The analysis of the network from another location was also captured and analyzed.
The wireless network sniffers give all the details of the network whether it is open or not.
The selected network has all the information related to the connected devices and the access points. Moreover, it provides clear information about the places spanned by the Wireless network. If any devices try to access any information from another device, then the information will be shown, and it will be possible to identify the device. Regardless of the means used by the intruder in accessing the information, it will be possible to tell that a certain device is illegally accessing the information. The Wi-Fi Protected Access II (WPA2) and the bandwidth of 2.4GHz are the most common used personal security protocols [2]. Others use the 128-bit or 64-bit encryption.
The Dual-band access point only allows the devices to operate between the % GHz and the 2.4GHz bands [7]. They, therefore, at the same time use two signals differently. The dual-band wireless Access Point connects all devices in any Wi-Fi network both the low and high-frequency devices to form a single Wi-Fi network without wasting the resources through the use of cables.
- It offers a bandwidth access point of up to 100times. This helps I providing the best result even if a high bandwidth such as the online gaming and streamlining online videos is used.
- Since any two networks work simultaneously without merging, then the Dual broadband Access points help in avoiding the interference from each other.
- The access point supports all the devices by allowing the connection regardless of their specification in bandwidth. This helps in automatically handling all the compatibility issues.
- The dual broadband Access point allows for the customization by the user, therefore, enabling the customization of the network to fit the needs.
The network sniffing tools offers network security. They give any intrusion attack information related to the network. It, therefore, ensures the security of the Local rea Network at any time. The sniffer also helps in updating for the failure of any node. Therefore, the administrator can identify the reason behind the failure. It, therefore, becomes hard for unauthorized access to the network by an intruder through either shutting down or disconnecting the network.
Conclusion
There are other networks sniffing tools available from different vendors in the market. Their operations depend on the platform; Windows, Mac, and Androids. Determining the complexity of the sniffing tools helps in choosing the best tool which requires special networks. It is also possible for multiple SSID to be used in a singles Access Point. This is enhanced by mapping all the network connections, e.g. by use of virtual LAN tagging method.
References
[1] B. D. Danny, Hacking Exposed Wireless, 3rd Edition, March 2015.
[2] D. Josiah Technology in Cybersecurity: Cyber Simplicity Ltd, March 9, 2016.
[3] E. Tetz, “Multiple SSIDs With a Single Access Point (AP),” [Online]. Available: https://www.dummies.com/programming/networking/cisco/cisco-networking-design-and-layout-methodology-overview/. [Accessed 9 September 2018].
[4] E. Tetz, Law of Network Security, Austin Publishers, Fifth Edition June 2014.
[5] H. Briere Danny, Home Wireless Networking, 1st Edition, September 2010.
[6] J. C. Wright, Wireless Hacking, Fourth Edition: Secrets of Wireless Security & Solutions 3rd Edition, Hill Education; 4 edition , (July 18, 2016).
[7] J. Jacob, Networking And Security in Industry, 4th Edition (February 7, 2018).
[8] K. J. Connolly, Internet Security, Aspen Publishers, 2017
[9] R. Meeuwiss, Cisco Networking All-in-One For Dummies, Cisco Press Inc., November 2018.
[10] R. Meeuwiss, Wireless local area network (WLAN) and wireless wide area network (WWAN), Third Edition May 2016.
[11] W. Bridgelall, Cybersecurity: Cybersecurity in Banking, Cyber Simplicity Ltd, January 2, 2017.
[12] W.T. Alias Cybersecurity Exposed: The Rules and policies of Cyber security, March 9, 2016.
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