Internet crimes are a serious problem requiring a serious solution. Hackers do not "select" the websites they target. They hack not only for financial gain. Numerous hackers have worked for years as part of cyber espionage groups that steal confidential information and trade secrets from a variety of industries and sectors. Even though most of the time attackers use different techniques and software tools to execute their attacks, they all begin with the same goal: stealing data or breaching a network in order to read or modify its content or retrieve confidential information such as usernames, passwords, bank details, email addresses, and anything else that could be useful. Today, we will discuss common hacking techniques so that you can protect your website from these attacks.
DNS Hijacking
When a hacker captures the information that the website uses to find other resources on the web, he can manipulate the address to redirect the request to other websites he controls. This is a common tactic used in fake banking websites or phishing pages that try to steal your private data such as usernames, passwords or bank account information. With the help of a tool called a DNS Hijacker, the hacker can intercept the request from the server, change the address of the website to one he controls and then redirect the request to his own website. Another way to hijack the DNS is by redirecting the information sent to the web server. In this case, the hacker will redirect the victim to a fake website that contains the correct IP address but has a different URL. With this method, the hacker has total control of the IP address and can acquire all the network traffic, including passwords and login information that the victim sends. This is a serious threat since not only do the hackers steal data, but they can also redirect the traffic of the users to malicious websites.
Man-in-the-Middle Attacks
A man-in-the-middle attack is the most common type of attack. It occurs when an attacker positions himself in the middle of the connection between two parties, such as a user and a web server, and reads and/or alters the data being transmitted. A man-in-the-middle attack can be done in many ways. One of them is to modify the request sent by the browser, which is done by a fake (man-in-the-middle) DNS server. When the user enters the URL in the browser, the DNS server changes the address to another one and then the browser sends the request to the server. A man-in-the-middle attack can also be done by using a radio transmitter. The attacker can use this to intercept the network traffic, change the URL address and redirect the browser.
SQL Injection
SQL injection is a type of attack that uses a string of characters that is used to access a database. The data is then stolen and changed in memory or even on the hard drive. This can cause the data to be lost or even deleted. The most common way to do this is through the URL, which is where hackers create the injection. This can lead to the deletion of important data, the opening of illegal sites and the stealing of login credentials and financial information. This can happen when users enter their password in an input field or click the wrong button in a login page.
Denial of Service Attacks
A denial of service attack (DoS attack) is when an attacker floods the server with requests, which prevents it from fulfilling the legitimate requests of the visitors. The website might be unusable or the attacker can even cause the website to be temporarily unavailable. This can result in serious consequences, such as financial losses, business losses, or even injuries. Hackers can launch this type of attack by sending large number of requests to the web server. This not only makes the website unreachable to the legitimate visitors, but it also slows down the service for other users. The best way to protect against these attacks is to filter out the requests based on the IP address that sent the request. Also, log the requests so that an administrator has a record of what happened when the request came.
Remote operation
A hacker can remotely take control of a device connected to the Internet by exploiting a known vulnerability in the device. For example, a remote file inclusion (SFII) occurs when a hacker sends a specially crafted request for an external resource such as an image file or a script that contains an SQL injection. The hacker can then include his own malicious code in the server. Another way to take control of a device is by exploiting a known vulnerability such as the one that allows the attacker to execute code on the device when it is connected to the Internet.
Website Defacement
This is the art of changing a URL on the website to some random characters and replacing the original URL. This is normally done by hackers to disrupt the original website and show their message to the visitors. In most cases, hackers use the defacement as a cover-up for their attacks or as a way to cause confusion among the users. For example, in one case, hackers changed the name of the website from the.gov to the.gov.me, which is just a few letters different from the original URL. The users were redirected to the defaced website and were asked to register with the service that was covered under the URL.
Web-Based Exploitation of Known Vulnerabilities
This is an exploit where hackers find a known security issue in a software that runs on a web server. This issue can be due to a programming error, a functionality weakness, a known or unknown security vulnerability or a combination of all these. This type of attack can lead to the remote execution of programs or scripts on the web server, allowing the hacker to run any type of malicious code. This is the most dangerous type of attack because it can lead to the execution of any type of malware on the server.
Man in the Middle (MITM)
This is an attack where an attacker acts as a middleman, intercepting all the data that travels between two devices such as the browser and the web server. The data is then stolen or changed in memory or even on the hard drive. This can cause the data to be lost or even deleted. This is the most commonly used attack technique. All the data that is sent is intercepted and the attacker has complete control of the device.
Script Kiddies and Automation Tools
When a hacker is performing all the attacks by himself, he uses only the script and automation tools, which are the most commonly used and most dangerous. Script kiddies are the hackers who have been using automation tools for a long time and are now using them in combination with the attacks. They normally use automation tools to launch automated attacks such as the one that launches a large number of requests to a web server in order to cause it to slow down for all the users. These hacking techniques can be used by any hacker, but the most dangerous ones are used by script kiddies. They can be easily detected by using a network security tool that is able to block the access to the hackers’ scripts and automate the detection of any anomaly.