Evil Twin Attack

Evil Twin Attack
Authors Name1, Authors Name2, and Mira Yun
School of Computing and Data Science
Wentworth Institute of Technology
Boston, MA 02115, USA
{authors1, authors2, yunm}@wit.edu
Abstract— Many coffee shops, restaurants, libraries, airports, and even shopping malls have free access points for the public Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi). It is usual for people to have an urge to check their emails or shop online or pay for subscriptions when they are in these areas. However, most of them do not realize that they can lose valuable and personal information through these access points to cybercriminals whose main target is users who are not keen on protecting their privacy. Because wireless connectivity has become widespread, it has become a brooding ground for cybercriminals and hackers. One of the most used tactics is known as the “Evil Twin Attack.” This paper explains this problem, how cybercriminals use it, and the various solutions available.
Keywords— Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi), access point (AP), Basic Service Set Identifiers (BSSID)
Introduction
An evil twin attack is whereby the hacker sets up a dubious wireless access point (AP) that imitates the features of a legitimate AP. This cloned AP has its Service Set Identifier (SSID) and Basic Service Set Identifiers (BSSID) address identical to that of the legitimate AP. This way, the end-users do not know that they are under attack. This fake AP is then used to steal sensitive information, login credentials, eavesdrop on the user’s activities and steal the unsuspecting user’s data for unlawful activities. The hackers intercept all kinds of unsecured information flowing through them and the users. Through this way, many people have fallen victim to cyberattacks, financial scams, and identity thefts [1].
evil twin attack
Hackers carry out these attacks to obtain Wi-Fi admin credentials decisively, and they can thus log into the network and control it [2]. This way, they can view all unencrypted data, and they can alter it to their advantage. To get access quickly, the cybercriminals pull the evil twin attack in the following steps:
Creating a phony Access Point- The hacker chooses a place with great hotspots like the library, coffee shop, or shopping malls. To carry out this, the hacker can use a router, tablet, or a wireless card and create a hotspot using the same SSID as a legitimate hotspot such that users will not suspect a thing.
Flooding the network- Once the hackers set the AP, they push the users from the actual access points to the fake ones. They make this possible by flooding the network with “de-authentication packets” such that it will be hard for users to access it. Once users find it hard to connect, they will s...