How To Prevent IP Address Spoofing
IP address spoofing is a method hackers use to pretend their IP address is someone else’s or from a legitimate organization, using that false credibility to steal information or place viruses. Once you learn more about this technique, you can prevent IP spoofing with a few methods.
If you’re looking for a managed IT services provider, contact our team at Renascence Consulting today. Learn how IP spoofing works and how to prevent it from happening.
What Is IP Address Spoofing?
Internet Protocol or IP spoofing occurs when someone uses fake IP packets to create a false IP address. They may use the packet’s IP address to hack into someone’s device or gain sensitive information. When you monitor inbound IP packets, you’re less likely to experience an attack.
Using a false source IP address can make a hacker look like they are from a safe and legitimate system. IP address spoofing is sometimes difficult to detect because the source IP addresses often appear credible and safe. However, the true private IP addresses are unknown since hackers are using fake source IP addresses.
A cyber attack can overwhelm computer servers and result in the leak of sensitive data from a website’s users. Setting up preventative measures can stop a hacker from moving forward. Having someone bypass IP address authentication can help show they are who they say.
How Does IP Spoofing Work?
Spoofed IP addresses give hackers remote access to a computer system and allow for malicious requests. While appearing as a legitimate network, they are using an external address as the source address for their IP spoof.
In 2018, GitHub, a popular code hosting platform, experienced one of the largest IP spoofing attacks. IT professionals can use multiple methods to block IP spoofing attacks and avoid harmful activity, such as with strong passwords, encryption protocols, or SSL certificates.
Spoofed connection requests are hard to spot from the outside, but further digging can reveal hacking concerns. Before learning to detect IP spoofing, you must first understand IP packets.
IP Packets
Packets are how devices and computers on a network communicate. IP addresses send multiple packets back and forth to communicate. Every time a device sends a packet, they also have a source IP header (or packet header) that shows its origin source.
Spoofed IP addresses show incorrect information in their outgoing packets to their destination IP address. If the other party doesn’t have packet filtering systems, there will be no inspection to flag the IP packet headers. With spoofing, false information hides the packets’ source.
Types Of IP Spoofing
Parties may use a spoof IP address to test a website or gain personable information from a site’s users. While not every instance of IP spoofing is dangerous, IP spoofing can lead to identity theft, financial threats, and access to private communication and information.
Here are some of the most common spoofing attacks:
Man in the middle
With this network spoofing method, the hacker acts as the “man in the middle,” getting in between the communication of two computers. The two devices are unaware of this middleman who can change or steal real IP packets. They could also quietly gain access to personal communication accounts and capture sensitive data.
Botnet devices
Botnets can send an extremely large amount of fake packets to a single server and use hacked devices to do harm. Botnet sources are hard to detect with spoofed ID addresses, and users can remotely send DDoS attacks, spam, or malware.
DDoS attack
DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks occur when IP packets overwhelm and flood a network until it crashes. During a DDoS attack, the source IP address is constantly changing, making it seemingly impossible to detect and stop.
No matter which malicious IP spoofing method a hacker uses, it’s critical to ensure you stay protected against these attacks. Your IT specialists can take multiple measures to stop them.
How To Prevent IP Spoofing
What appears as a legitimate entity could be quietly stealing your and other parties’ sensitive information in an IP spoofing attack. The world’s internet traffic is growing and constantly at risk, but you can employ methods to stop these hackers. Consider the following measures:
Network Attack Blocker: Using a network attack blocker can catch IP address spoofing.
Secure Encryption Protocols: These keep a site safe from potential hackers, and HTTPS is a common protocol. HTTPS is simply a more secure form of HTTP for communication.
IP Address Authentication: Authenticating IP addresses sees if the source IP address is legitimate and will stop the source from further action if they are suspicious.
Packet Filtering: Packet filters and firewalls can block and detect fraudulent packets.
Network Monitoring Tools: Frequently monitoring networks can help you block malicious parties and look for suspicious behavior.
Complex Passwords: Strong passwords that are difficult to predict can keep you safe.
Ingress Filtering: It is a way to prevent DDoS attacks by seeing if the source address is actually a part of its claimed enterprise network. DDoS attacks are less likely to occur if you employ this method and only allow trusted sources into your system.
Egress Filtering: You can reject packets that are claiming to derive from your network. They are using your routers and technology to appear legitimate and gain trust. Egress filters also prevent people from sending out attacks and information from the inside.
Besides using spoof IP addresses, you should be cautious of other hacking methods, such as text message spoofing and (address resolution protocol) ARP spoofing. Working with a trusted IT consultant can ensure your system is safe and protected against cyberattacks.
Contact Us For Smart IT Solutions
At Renascence IT Consulting, we can help your team with cybersecurity and IT solutions and prevent IP spoofing from harming your business. We’ll help your business run more efficiently and without interruption and determine the best IT methods to keep your technology safe.
Our IT experts can improve your network performance and increase system security. We serve clients in the Bay Area. Call Renascence IT Consulting at (510) 403-1093 to book a consultation!
