Spoofing is the act of concealing a communication or identity so that it appears to be from a reliable, authorized source. Spoofing attacks can take many forms, ranging from the common email spoofing attacks used in phishing campaigns to caller ID spoofing attacks used to commit fraud.
As part of a spoofing attack, attackers may also target more technical elements of an organization's network, such as an IP address, domain name system (DNS) server, or Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) service.
Spoofing attacks typically prey on trusted relationships by impersonating a person or organization known to the victim. These messages may even be personalized to the victim in some cases, such as whale phishing attacks that use email spoofing or website spoofing. there are various types of spoofing attacks. Here are three of the most common.
- IP spoofing attack
An IP spoofing attack occurs when an attacker attempts to impersonate an IP address in order to pretend to be another user. The attacker sends packets from a false source address during an IP address spoofing attack. These IP packets are sent to network devices and function similarly to a DoS attack. To overwhelm a device with too many packets, the attacker uses multiple packet addresses.
IP spoofing attacks, which are one of the more common types of spoofing attacks, can be detected using a network analyzer or bandwidth monitoring tool. Monitoring your network will allow you to monitor normal traffic usage and detect abnormal traffic. This alerts that something isn't right and allows you to investigate further.
If looking for IP addresses and flow data in particular that can lead you to illegal internet traffic. Detecting IP spoofing attacks early is critical because they frequently occur as part of DDoS (Direct Denial of Service) attacks, which can bring the entire network down.
- Email Spoofing Attacks
Email spoofing attacks occur when an attacker sends an email that appears to be from another sender. The sender field is spoofing in these attacks to display bogus contact information. The attacker pretends to be this entity and then sends you an email asking for information. These attacks are frequently used to impersonate administrators and request account information from other members of staff.
Email spoofing attacks are perhaps the most dangerous because they directly target employees. Responding to the wrong email can give an attacker access to sensitive information. If you receive a spoofed email, your first line of defense should be to be skeptical of email display names.
Attackers frequently spoof display names, so double-check the email address. If the email contains any links, you can open them in a new window to see if they are legitimate. It's also a good idea to look for spelling mistakes and other inaccuracies that could indicate the sender isn't legitimate.
- DNS Spoofing Attacks
DNS, or domain name system, attacks jumble up the list of public IP addresses. DNS servers maintain a database of public IP addresses and hostnames that are used to aid in network navigation. When a DNS attack occurs, the attacker alters domain names, causing them to be rerouted to a new IP address.
One example is when you enter a website URL and are directed to a spoofed domain rather than the website you intended to visit. This is a common method for attackers to introduce worms and viruses into networks.
It is a good idea to use a tool like dnstraceroute to detect a DNS spoofing attack. DNS spoofing attacks rely on an attacker spoofing the DNS response. Using dnstraceroute, you can see where the DNS request was answered. You'll be able to see the DNS server's location and whether someone spoofed the DNS response.
