Network Attacks and Defenses: A Hands-on Approach

• Presents a practical guide for simulating common network attacks and defenses
• Bridges the gap between academia and industry by offering real-world scenarios of best practices
• Enables students to actively learn attack and defense strategies with hands-on lab scenarios
• Includes a rich collection of diagrams to describe setup for network attacks, architecture, and configurations
• Introduces model scenarios to help educators of security courses design and implement innovative hands-on exercises
• Provides multi-vector hands-on experience

The attacks on computers and business networks are growing daily, and the need for security professionals who understand how malfeasants perform attacks and compromise networks is a growing requirement to counter the threat. Network security education generally lacks appropriate textbooks with detailed, hands-on exercises that include both offensive and defensive techniques. Using step-by-step processes to build and generate attacks using offensive techniques, Network Attacks and Defenses: A Hands-on Approach enables students to implement appropriate network security solutions within a laboratory environment.

Topics covered in the labs include:

• Content Addressable Memory (CAM) table poisoning attacks on network switches
• Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) cache poisoning attacks
• The detection and prevention of abnormal ARP traffic
• Network traffic sniffing and the detection of Network Interface Cards (NICs) running in promiscuous mode
• Internet Protocol-Based Denial-of-Service (IP-based DoS) attacks
• Reconnaissance traffic
• Network traffic filtering and inspection
• Common mechanisms used for router security and device hardening
• Internet Protocol Security Virtual Private Network (IPsec VPN) security solution protocols, standards, types, and deployments
• Remote Access IPsec VPN security solution architecture and its design, components, architecture, and implementations

These practical exercises go beyond theory to allow students to better anatomize and elaborate offensive and defensive techniques. Educators can use the model scenarios described in this book to design and implement innovative hands-on security exercises. Students who master the techniques in this book will be well armed to counter a broad range of network security threats.

About the Authors

Zouheir Trabelsi is an Associate Professor with research expertise in network and information security at the UAE University. He obtained his Ph.D. degree in Computer Science from Tokyo University of Technology and Agriculture, Japan. With more than fifteen years of research and teaching experience he has designed and implemented many courses, and hands-on exercises especially on ethical hacking and defense techniques for network security courses. He is the co-authors of two books on network security and numerous articles and conference publications. For seven years, he has been the chair of the Information Security department at UAE University.

Kadhim Hayawi holds a Master's degree in Computer Science from Dalhousie University, Canada, and currently is a PhD candidate in the field of Information Security and Privacy at the University of Waterloo, Canada. He has over nineteen years of industrial and teaching experience in network and information security. He earned CCSP, GCIA, CCAI, CQS-InfoSec, CQS-VPN, CQS-FW, CQS-IPS, CCNA industry certifications, and the 4013 Information Assurance and 4011 Information System Security Recognitions by NSA, CNSS and NSTISSI. He is the co-author of numerous articles and a book in wireless security. He is currently an instructor of Information Security at UAE University.

Sujith Samuel Mathew is a PhD candidate pursuing his research interests in distributed computing focused on the Future Internet at the University of Adelaide, South Australia. He has received his Master's degree in Software Engineering from the Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU), India. He has over twelve years of experience working both in the IT Industry and in IT Academia. He has authored a book chapter, articles and conference publications within his area of research.

Arwa Al Braiki holds a Bachelor's degree in Information Security from the UAE University. She has gained strong hands-on skills in networking and security, especially in configuring Cisco and Juniper Network security devices. Currently she pursues her career as a security engineer, and has several years of industrial experience.