The term web jacking comes from the phrase “hi-jacking.” In these types of crimes, the hacker acquires access and takes control over an individuals website. He can alter the information on the website. It is one form of cybercrime. Web jacking is a sort of social engineering assault known as phishing, which is frequently used to obtain user data such as usernames and passwords, and credit card details. When a person pretends to be an object and deceives the victim by answering emails, or text messages. The recipient is then duped into clicking on a malicious link, which results in the compromised system, the freezing of programs as part of a ransomware assault, or the exposing of sensitive data.
Attacks can have severe repercussions. Unauthorized purchasing, money laundering, and identity theft are examples of this for individuals. Identity theft is also frequently used as part of a bigger attack, such as an Advanced Persistent Threat (APT), to obtain access to corporate or government networks. Employees are compromised in the latter situation to breach security perimeters, distribute malware within a restricted region, or obtain access to sensitive data. An organization that has been harmed by these attacks is likely to suffer larger financial losses as well as a loss of market share, reputation, and consumer confidence. In general, an illegal attempt to obtain sensitive information might turn into a security crisis from which the company will struggle to recover.
Web Jacking Methods
- A hacker obtains a free domain that is identical to a web application’s domain. Then the attacker sets up a real site to be harmful and lies about the web address of the real site using a generic attack vector.
- The attacker exploits the malicious site’s domain to send a request to a valid web application. The web application signs the user out after requesting authentic information about the victim (e.g., a user account). To log in as the victim, the attacker uses the user’s login information.
- Now the assailant can log in as the victim using the victim’s login credentials and can access any data of the victim. With the victim’s real name and password, the attacker can now make an authentication request to the legitimate website. Only if the attackers’ credentials match the victim’s account will the request be accepted.
- The assailant registers a free domain name with one or more numbers or unique characters. The attacker opens an account at a hosting provider or cloud storage site using the official domain website link as the source of registration. The attacker submits a malicious script to the host site using this account, which contains the malicious credentials. On behalf of the victim, the program does a harmful action.
- Malicious scripts that function with popular cloud storage sites like DropBox or Google Drive are frequently used by attackers. The fraudulent credentials are shown on the account page after the malware is uploaded to the hosting site/cloud storage site.
- The user is led to a login screen on the hosting services or cloud storage provider’s website. After that, the user is prompted to enter required details. The user is then presented with a bogus login form that uses the malicious site’s credentials. The host site or cloud storage site is logged out of the account if the user is fooled into filling the phony login form. This signifies that the user’s real account is also logged out.
- Now the attacker has access to the victim’s account. Because the victim’s account was logged out when the user went to the login page, this happened. The attacker can now access any file the victim has on the host server or cloud storage site using the victim’s valid account. Any files placed on the cloud storage site can likewise be deleted by the attacker, & users are never notified of the situation.
Applying the Web Jacking methods
#1: For using the web jacking attack approach, we’ll use the setoolkit utility in Kali Linux.
#2: Log in to your Kali Linux machine and go to the Terminal.
#3: Produce a lethal setoolkit.
#4: It will provide you with a variety of attack options, but you must choose a social-engineering attack.
#5: Select a Social-engineering attack by typing 1. It will demonstrate a variety of engineering assault tactics. Typing 2 will show you numerous ways to attack the website since you must select a vector to attack it. The methods above will construct a phony webpage that looks like the victim’s and host it on your machine.
#6: Copy the link to the phony website and send it to the victim. Change the link’s IP address to a domain name if it’s your home address. Open the link and type your computer’s IP address here to convert your IP address to a domain name. It will establish a connection. Now you may copy and transmit your link to the victim, and then wait for them to fill out their information.
#7: When the victim clicks on a link in their browser, it displays the message “help www.abc.com migrate to a new address, click here to go to a new location,” & they are led to a phony webpage.
Safety Measures
People who receive emails containing fraudulent links should always check the URL before clicking the link by putting it into the address bar. The user should not click on any questionable links in emails if the URL does not match the intended website. Users should also avoid clicking on URLs in emails that contain an embedded image or that begin with a link that seems like a standard URL.
Conclusion
The objective of this Web Jacking is to harm someone’s image or to extort money from the legitimate owner. It’s an intriguing strategy that tries to fool the user into thinking the web page is real when, in fact, it’s a false page, and by clicking on it, they collect the victim’s information.