Download from the Session Cookies, and Then Access That Captured Person's Internet, Such a Combination Seems to Constitute a Likely Account Information
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
RESEARCH PAPERS THE ROLE OF CLIENT ISOLATION IN PROTECTING WI-FI USERS FROM ARP SPOOFING ATTACKS By TIMUR MIRZOEV * JOEL STACEY WHITE ** * Professor of Information Technology Department, Georgia, Southern University, United States. ** Office of Information & Instructional Technology at Bainbridge College. ABSTRACT This study investigates the role of the client isolation technology Public Secure Packet Forwarding (PSPF) in defending 802.11 wireless (Wi-Fi) clients, connected to a public wireless access point, from Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) cache poisoning attacks, or ARP spoofing. Exploitation of wireless attack vectors such as these have been on the rise and some have made national and international news. Although client isolation technologies are common place in most wireless access points, they are rarely enabled by default. Since an average user generally has a limited understanding of IP networking concepts, it is rarely enabled during access point configurations. Isolating wireless clients from one another on unencrypted wireless networks is a simple and potentially effective way of protection. The purpose of this research is to determine if a commonly available and easily implementable wireless client isolation security technology, such as PSPF, is an effective method for defending wireless clients against attacks. Keywords: Wireless Networking, Wi-Fi, Information Security, ARP Poisoning, PSPF. INTRODUCTION Ransome, 2004). WPA is very commonly supported by most The use of Wireless Networking Technologies to AP hardware. In the WPA scenario, a wireless client is communicate on the Internet continues to rise every year, provided with a temporary encryption key or 'session key' with public hotspots numbering in the tens of millions with which it can communicate securely with the AP and worldwide (WeFi., 2011). Laptop computers and encrypt/decrypt traffic (Cayirci, Rong, 2009). Once a time smartphones using the 802.11 (Wi-Fi) protocols make up a limit is reached or the session has ended the key is expired large number of the millions of wirelessly connected or exchanged for a new one, making any further use of the devices (Kendrick, 2010). Wireless networking is a key invalid (Cayirci, Rong, 2009). This type of protection convenient way to stay connected from remote and prevents an attacker from viewing traffic or capturing a mobile locations (Bowman, 2003). The usage of Wireless client's key and then using it to impersonate the client. There Local Area Networks (WLAN) is widely spread due to the fact are other types of security of this nature, but they all have that computers communicate wirelessly, without the need one thing in common: it is necessary for the client to for physical cable connectivity (Umar, 1993). Unfortunately, authenticate to the AP in some way with pre-shared since the data is transferred over public airwaves where it authentication information. can theoretically be intercepted by others within range, This study determines if one manufacturer's version of client wireless networking creates a unique set of security isolation, Cisco System's Public Secure Packet Forwarding concerns. (Cisco, 2010), prevents wireless devices from launching Connections between Wi-Fi enabled clients and network impersonation attacks. The focus of this study is on the well- access points (APs) can be secured through a variety of known man-in-the-middle IP ARP spoofing attack (Cross, different methods (Ciampa, 2006). One method, Wi-Fi 2008). It is generated using a publically available set of Protected Access (WPA), involves using strong data hacking tools known as Cain & Abel (Oxid, 2011). Since encryption and rotating authentication keys (Rittinghouse, Cisco's Aironet access points are widely used throughout i-manager’s Journal on Information Technology, Vol. 1 l No. 2 l March - May 2012 11 RESEARCH PAPERS the world, and Cain & Abel is free to download from the session cookies, and then access that captured person's Internet, such a combination seems to constitute a likely account information. Authentication attack with Firesheep real-world scenario and test of the premise of client scenario has been previously presented by Miller and isolation protection. Gregg (Miller, Gregg, 2011). Although Firesheep is 1. Literature Review designed to allow a quick access to a predefined number of social networking sites, its open source nature also allows In the case of clients using publically available Wi-Fi it to be modified for other uses. This tool uses a hacking connections, authentication is not only inconvenient but is technology known as 'side-jacking' - it does not hijack an impossible due to a large number of unique visitors. The HTTP session; it only captures the session's cookie to allow convenience of attaching to a public Wi-Fi network at will forging of a new 'side' connection (Leonhard, 2010). Many without hassle is what makes the technology inviting to so popular social networking sites, such as Facebook and many people. However, there is a major problem with this Twitter, do not encrypt their communications by default, type of scenario: Public Wi-Fi connections without making this sort of attack possible (Vaughan-Nichols, 2010). authentication transmit and receive traffic in an unencrypted or plain-text fashion. This means that anyone There is another form of attack that is not well known to an listening with a Wi-Fi data capture device can intercept the average wireless user. It is far more dangerous and traffic and read its contents. This is not the only issue disturbing than ones such as Firesheep from a security involved. Well known vulnerabilities could allow an attacker perspective. That attack is known as an ARP spoofing or ARP to place himself/herself in the middle of a user's cache poisoning attack. It is a classic man-in-the-middle conversation, in effect 'becoming' the user on the wireless session hijacking, which can also be executed through network (Ali, 2008). There are ways in which this type of freely downloadable software such as Oxid's Cain & Abel scenario can be avoided: Through the use of a technology (Sanders, 2010). ARP spoofing allows a malicious user on called 'client isolation'. Client isolation works on the premise the network to place their computer's network interface that any wireless device connected to a Wi-Fi access point between a victim and the computer(s) with which they are must communicate through the AP in order to talk to any communicating (Graves, 2007). This insertion allows for a other device, whether that other device is located on the capture, and possible modification, of all data sent; in local area network (LAN) to which the AP is connected or on essence completely hijacking the conversation. A hacker the Internet. Using this fact to their advantage, some Wi-Fi can then pose as the intended recipient, corrupt the data AP manufacturers make it possible to isolate clients from sent, change that data, or simply just capture it for later use each other by preventing any device associated to the AP (Marcus, 2010). The main difference between this attack from talking to any other associated device, using the AP and the Firesheep attack is that the hijacked users have not transceiver as the moderator. This does not prevent Wi-Fi- just inadvertently allowed access to their social networking based attacks on the LAN, or LAN data sniffing, but it does in account; they have placed themselves at the mercy of the theory prevent wireless devices on a particular AP from attacker, possibly giving up credit card numbers and/or directly attacking and impersonating each other. private information, completely unaware of the situation. In recent years, substantial negatives associated with the Since a Firesheep attack and ARP spoofing require open use of wireless communication technologies have come and unsecured wired or wireless communications to to light. Specifically, a simple social networking account operate effectively, there is a need to find proper hacking tool known as Firesheep, released in October of protection against such occurrences. The Firesheep 2010, has made international news (Gahran, 2010). problem is solvable by the web sites that the users are Firesheep is a freely downloadable extension to the FireFox accessing, and some have already taken steps to make web browser developed by Eric Butler (Butler, 2010). the required fixes (Marcus, 2010). Encrypting all Firesheep allows its users to capture other wireless users HTTP communications between users and servers through the 12 i-manager’s Journal on Information Technology, Vol. 1 l No. 2 l March - May 2012 RESEARCH PAPERS use of web session encryption technologies like SSL 'FREE_WIFI_PSPF', which was secured by PSPF. These two Wi- (Secured Sockets Layer) eliminates the usable capture of Fi connections were accessed by two Dell laptop clients, a session cookies in transit, thereby protecting from Dell Precision M4500 which acted as the victim, and a Dell Firesheep. ARP spoofing attacks on an open access Latitude D420 which acted as the attacker. Both Dell wireless network are much different in nature (Cross, 2008). laptops were configured with the Microsoft Windows 7 Since an attacker can intercept users' data, it is possible for operating system, the latest operating system patches, even encrypted communications to be hijacked (Sanders, and 802.11G Wi-Fi network adapters. The attacking 2010). In such a scenario a different type of security computer was also configured with Wireshark, a data technology is needed. packet sniffing freeware product (Wireshark, 2011), and Cisco Systems, a world-wide leader in the manufacture of Cain & Abel, a freeware ARP spoofing hacking tool (Oxid, networking equipment (Cisco, 2011), has implemented 2011). These and other details are included in Table 1. such a technology in most of its wireless access point The computers used in this study were chosen because hardware; that technology is known as PSPF, or Public they are typical computers which might be used by public Secure Packet Forwarding.