Pharming: Difference between revisions
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{{about|the computer security exploit|pharming in genetics|pharming (genetics)|pharming in drug abuse|pharming parties}} |
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{{Refimprove|date=January 2009}} |
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'''Pharming'''{{efn|The word "pharming" is pronounced as "farm-ing".|name=pro}} is a cyber attack intended to redirect a [[website]]'s traffic to another, fake site. Pharming can be conducted either by changing the [[hosts file]] on a victim's computer or by [[Exploit (computer security)|exploitation]] of a [[vulnerability (computing)|vulnerability]] in [[Domain name system|DNS server]] [[software]]. DNS servers are computers responsible for resolving Internet names into their real [[IP address]]es. Compromised DNS servers are sometimes referred to as [[DNS spoofing|"poisoned"]]. |
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Pharming requires unprotected access to target a computer, such as altering a customer's home computer, rather than a corporate business server. |
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The term "pharming" is a [[neologism]] based on the words "farming" and "[[phishing]]". Phishing is a type of [[social engineering (computer security)|social-engineering]] attack to obtain [[Authentication|access credentials]], such as [[user name]]s and [[password]]s. In recent years, both pharming and phishing have been used to gain information for [[online identity theft]]. Pharming has become of major concern to businesses hosting [[ecommerce]] and [[online banking]] websites. Sophisticated measures known as [[anti-pharming]] are required to protect against this serious [[threat (computer)|threat]]. [[Antivirus software]] and [[spyware removal software]] cannot protect against pharming. |
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== Pharming vulnerability at home and work == |
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While malicious domain-name resolution can result from compromises in the large numbers of trusted nodes that participate in a name lookup, the most vulnerable points of compromise are near the leaves of the Internet. For instance, incorrect entries in a desktop computer's ''[[hosts file]]'', which circumvents name lookup with its own local name to IP address mapping, is a popular target for malware. Once rewritten, a legitimate request for a sensitive website can direct the user to a fraudulent copy. [[Desktop computer|Desktops]] are often better targets for pharming because they receive poorer administration than most Internet servers. |
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More worrisome than host-file attacks is the compromise of a local [[network router]].<ref> |
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{{cite news |
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| url=http://www.cs.indiana.edu/~atsow/mal-router |
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| title=Can You Trust a Wireless Router? |
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| date=February 24, 2006 |
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| publisher=Indiana University Bloomington}}</ref> Since most routers specify a trusted DNS to clients as they join the network, misinformation here will spoil lookups for the entire [[Local Area Network|LAN]]. Unlike host-file rewrites, local-router compromise is difficult to detect. Routers can pass bad DNS information in two ways: malconfiguration of existing settings or wholesale rewrite of [[embedded software]] (aka [[firmware]]). Many routers allow the administrator to specify a particular, trusted DNS in place of the one suggested by an upstream node (e.g., the [[Internet Service Provider|ISP]]). An attacker could specify a DNS server under his control instead of a legitimate one. All subsequent resolutions would go through the bad server. A scenario involving malicious [[JavaScript]] that changes the router's DNS server is called ''drive-by pharming'' and was demonstrated by Stamm, Ramzan and Jakobsson in a December 2006 technical report.<ref> |
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{{cite news |
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| url=http://www.cs.indiana.edu/cgi-bin/techreports/TRNNN.cgi?trnum=TR641 |
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| title=Drive-By Pharming |
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| date=December 13, 2006 |
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| publisher=Indiana University Bloomington}}</ref> |
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Alternatively, many routers have the ability to replace their firmware (i.e. the internal software that executes the device's more complex services). Like malware on desktop systems, a firmware replacement can be very difficult to detect. A stealthy implementation will appear to behave the same as the manufacturer's firmware; the administration page will look the same, settings will appear correct, etc. This approach, if well executed, could make it difficult for network administrators to discover the reconfiguration, if the device appears to be configured as the administrators intend but actually redirects DNS traffic in the background. Pharming is only one of many attacks that malicious firmware can mount; others include eavesdropping, active [[man in the middle attack]]s, and traffic logging. Like misconfiguration, the entire LAN is subject to these actions. |
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By themselves, these pharming approaches have only academic interest. However, the ubiquity of consumer grade [[wireless router]]s presents a massive [[vulnerability (computing)|vulnerability]]. Administrative access can be available wirelessly on most of these devices. Moreover, since these routers often work with their default settings, administrative passwords are commonly unchanged. Even when altered, many are guessed quickly through [[dictionary attack]]s, since most consumer grade routers don't introduce timing penalties for incorrect login attempts. Once administrative access is granted, all of the router's settings including the firmware itself may be altered. These attacks are difficult to trace because they occur outside the home or small office ''and'' outside the Internet. |
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== Instances of pharming == |
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On 15th January 2005, the domain name for a large New York ISP, [[Panix (ISP)|Panix]], was [[Domain hijacking|hijacked]] to point to a website in [[Australia]]. No financial losses are known. The domain was later restored on 17th January, and [[ICANN]]'s review blames [[Melbourne IT]] (now known as "Arq Group") "as a result of a failure of Melbourne IT to obtain express authorization (sic) from the registrant in accordance with ICANN's Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy."<ref>{{cite news |
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| url=https://www.smh.com.au/national/icann-review-blames-melb-it-for-hijack-20050316-gdkxks.html |
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| title=ICANN review blames Melb IT for hijack |
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| date=March 16, 2005 |
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| publisher=The Sydney Morning Herald}}</ref> |
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In January 2008, [[Symantec]] reported a drive-by pharming incident, directed against a Mexican bank, in which the DNS settings on a customer's home router were changed after receipt of an e-mail that appeared to be from a legitimate Spanish-language greeting-card company.<ref>{{cite news |
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| url=http://www.networkworld.com/article/2282527/lan-wan/first-case-of--drive-by-pharming--identified-in-the-wild.html |
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| last=Messmer |
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| first=Ellen |
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| title=First case of "drive-by pharming" identified in the wild |
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| date=January 22, 2008 |
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| publisher=Network World}}</ref> |
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==Controversy over the use of the term== |
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The term "pharming" has been controversial within the field. At a conference organized by the [[Anti-Phishing Working Group]], [[Phillip Hallam-Baker]] denounced the term as "a [[marketing]] [[neologism]] designed to convince banks to buy a new set of [[security service (telecommunication)|security services]]". |
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==See also== |
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* [[DNS spoofing]] |
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* [[IT risk]] |
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* [[Mutual authentication]] |
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* [[Page hijacking]] |
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* [[Trusteer]] |
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==Notes== |
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{{notelist}} |
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==References== |
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{{Reflist}} |
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; Sources |
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* {{cite news |
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|url = http://www.windowsitpro.com/Article/ArticleID/46789/46789.html?Ad=1 |
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|title = Security: Phishing and Pharming |
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|date = June 22, 2005 |
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|publisher = Windows IT Pro Magazine |
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|url-status = dead |
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|archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20050811085205/http://www.windowsitpro.com/Article/ArticleID/46789/46789.html?Ad=1 |
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|archivedate = August 11, 2005 |
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}} |
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* {{cite news|url=http://www.csoonline.com/talkback/071905.html |title=How Can We Stop Phishing and Pharming Scams? |date=July 20, 2005 |publisher=CSO Magazine |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20051124105904/http://www.csoonline.com/talkback/071905.html |archivedate=November 24, 2005 }} |
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==External links== |
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*[[YouTube|ZD Net Article "Alarm over "Pharming" Attacks]] |
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*[http://www.networkworld.com/columnists/2005/062705edit.html Network World Article on New Anti-Pharming Technology] |
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*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060701040504/http://www.csoonline.com/read/100105/pharm.html After Phishing? Pharming!] |
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[[Category:Types of malware]] |
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[[Category:Computer security exploits]] |
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Revision as of 08:49, 27 September 2019
hi tom