What is Eavesdrop Prevention?
One type of security violation is called “eavesdropping.” Normally, a node on a network (Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, Token Ring, FDDI) ignores packets that are not addressed to it. Eavesdropping occurs when a node goes into mode where it receives all packets. This is usually called promiscuous mode and sometimes monitor mode. Often this is a good thing: bridges, routers, and network analyzers must operate in promiscuous mode to do their jobs. However, on a secure network you don’t want just anybody to eavesdrop on the network. The most common ways eavesdropping is exploited is by password capture programs. These programs watch for packets on a network containing passwords–when it sees them, it records them. These passwords can then be used to completely compromise the security on an organization’s servers. Don’t think that these programs are hard to write or hard to find. They are easy to write, easy to find, and come in many different flavors. Believe it or not, many PC network systems
