A network sniffer in the wrong hands is a deadly weapon. A network sniffer is a real danger because it is a very powerful and difficult to detect tool
Security breaches of all kinds are reported all the time. Everyday we hear of hackers who managed to steal sensitive data, of people who become victims of identity theft, etc. Very often the breaches are so incredible that you wonder if hackers have supernatural powers. Well, hackers hardly have supernatural powers but they don't need them supernatural powers are not necessary when a networklacks security and one has the right tools to break in.
Hackers Can Monitor Networks With a network sniffer
The tools hackers use to break into networks are more or less the same tools network admins use to monitor and maintain their network with. For example, network sniffers are among the tools hackers love most. A network sniffer captures packets and shows you their contents.This means that with the help of a network sniffer running somewhere into the network, hackers can monitor all the unencrypted traffic to and from this network.
This is really scary - just imagine a malicious hacker who knows all the secrets of your company. It gets even more dangerous for networks, where hubs (and not switches) are used because in this case a network sniffer can be installed on any computer and the hacker will monitor all the traffic in that segment, not only the traffic to and from the host. The good news is that hubs are almost out of use today and because of that hackers can do less damage with a network sniffer.
Hackers Can Obtain Passwords and Credit Card Numbers With a network sniffer
When a hacker uses a network sniffer to monitor your network, this is not nice but when he or she steals passwords, credit card numbers and other types of sensitive data, this is a real danger. Unencrypted passwords, credit card numbers and other sensitive data are an easy target for a hacker with a network sniffer.
In many of the cases of mass theft of credit card numbers and passwords happen because hackers use a network sniffer on an unencrypted network. For truth's sake, it is important to mention that even if all the traffic is encrypted, there are still many other ways to obtain sensitive data. But when the traffic over a network is not encrypted and nobody monitors the network for unauthorized network sniffers, sooner or later data will be stolen.
One of the greatest achievements for hackers with a network sniffer is to capture the administrator's password. When the administrator's password is transmitted over the network in an unencrypted form, this is an easy target for hackers. If hackers manage to intercept the admin password, they have the power to do everything they want to on your network - delete data, modify data, etc. So, do you see why hackers don't need supernatural powers but only the admin password?