Evil Twin (wireless Networks)
Evil twin is a term for a rogue Wi-Fi access point that appears to be a legitimate one offered on the premises, but actually has been set up by a hacker to eavesdrop on wireless communications among Internet surfers.
Evil twin is the wireless version of the phishing scam. An attacker fools wireless users into connecting a laptop or mobile phone to a tainted hotspot by posing as a legitimate provider.
Wireless devices link to the Internet via "hotspots" – nearby connection points that they lock on to. But these hotspots can act like an open door to thieves. Anyone with suitable equipment can locate a hotspot and take its place, substituting their own "evil twin".
This type of evil twin attack may be used by a hacker to steal the passwords of unsuspecting users by either snooping the communication link or by phishing, which involves setting up a fraudulent Web site and luring people there.
Read more about Evil Twin (wireless Networks): Method, Solutions
Famous quotes containing the words evil and/or twin:
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—Tacitus (c. 55–c. 120)
“We live under continual threat of two equally fearful, but seemingly opposed, destinies: unremitting banality and inconceivable terror. It is fantasy, served out in large rations by the popular arts, which allows most people to cope with these twin specters.”
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