Understanding Protocol Analyzers
The terms protocol analyzing and packet sniffing are interchangeable. They refer to the process of monitoring the data that is transmitted across a network. The software that performs the operation is called either an analyzer or a sniffer, as mentioned in the “Network Monitors” section at the beginning of this chapter. Sniffers are readily available on the Internet. These tools were initially intended for legitimate network-monitoring processes, but they can also be used to gather data for illegal purposes.
IM traffic, for example, uses the Internet and is susceptible to packet-sniffing activities. Any information contained in an IM session is potentially vulnerable to interception. Make sure users understand ...
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