Re: [Sheflug] igmp packets...... it's getting worse....

["Chris J/#6" <nospam [at] nccnet.co.uk>]

> i didn't realise it was so easy to look at the contents of packets as they 
> moved around the network........
> 

Well now you do ... :)

> i geuss this is how hackers get your emails and passwords then.....
> does this mean it's possible to listen in to general network trafic outside 
> of my machine?
> don't worry.... it's not a general pastime of mine to eavs drop on 
> others...... just want to know how much of what i do and say is available to 
> others......
> 

remember -- unless the connection is said to be encrpyted, everything goes 
back and forth in plaintext. On the internet, most encrypted connections go 
either over SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) or tunneled on SSH (Secure SHell).

You can only listen to packets on the same physical peice of wire as you ... 
so this means *anything* connected on a BNC backbone, or all machines on a 
hub; but excludes wires seperated by switches, bridges and routers. Though 
there may be exceptions...(very) rare they will be, and usually will be down 
to some funny config.

Bear in mind that most ISP's probably have better things to do than spy on 
your packets, plus they have silly amounts of data going over them. The LINX 
(London Internet Exchange ... Europes biggest internet hub) has about 3GB/sec 
going over its cables. Try sticking Ethereal on that to get useful info :-)

Realistically, there are two points you have to be concerned about, datawise:
	1. Your ISP, as they handle all your initial connections, and
		at the modem, the traffic is easy to filter
	2. The end your connected to ... do you trust their network?
Filtering anywhere en route *is* possible, but less likely due to the 
inherent nature of the internet (routes are dynamic; so complete transactions 
could potentially go via several different routes during the connection). So 
don't worry too much :)

Chris...


-- 
Chris Johnson            \  "If not for me then, do it for yourself. If not
sixie@nccnet.co.uk        \  for then do it for the world." -- Stevie Nicks
www.nccnet.co.uk/~sixie/   ~---------------------------------------+
Redclaw chat - http://redclaw.org.uk - telnet redclaw.org.uk 2000   \______


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