Understanding and Mitigating ARP Security Threats

Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) translates IP addresses into MAC addresses. It's pivotal for network communication but lacks built-in security measures, making it vulnerable to exploitation by attackers.

ARP poisoning, or spoofing, involves sending fake ARP messages over a local network. This attack misleads systems into linking an attacker's MAC address with legitimate IP addresses, diverting traffic.

MAC spoofing is the act of masquerading one's hardware address. Attackers often combine it with ARP poisoning to impersonate devices, allowing unauthorized network access and data interception.

Unusual ARP traffic, including gratuitous ARP packets, can indicate poisoning. Network monitoring tools and inspection of ARP cache tables are essential for detection.

To mitigate ARP poisoning, employ static ARP entries, use packet filtering to block malicious ARP packets, and implement dynamic ARP inspection on switches.

Secure networks with IPsec for encryption, which makes ARP unnecessary. Additionally, use Virtual LANs (VLANs) to segregate network segments, reducing the attack surface.

Beyond data interception, ARP poisoning can lead to denial-of-service attacks, session hijacking, and man-in-the-middle exploits, posing severe threats to network integrity.