Attack Technique
Cookie hijacking
Cookie hijacking is a serious security risk that can compromise user accounts and sensitive data.
Definition
What is cookie hijacking?
Cookie hijacking, also known as session hijacking, is a type of attack where the attacker intercepts or steals a user's session cookie to gain unauthorized access to an active web session.
Since session cookies store authentication details, attackers who hijack them can impersonate the legitimate user. This allows them to bypass login credentials and gain access to sensitive data, applications, or accounts.
How it works
How cookie hijacking works
Attackers use various methods to hijack user session cookies. Common techniques include:
- Man in the middle (MitM) attacks: Attackers intercept cookies transmitted over unsecured networks or public Wi-Fi by using packet sniffing tools.
- Cross-site scripting (XSS): Attackers inject malicious scripts into a vulnerable website to steal cookies from users who visit the infected page.
- Malware and browser exploits: Attackers use malware or compromised browser extensions to extract cookies directly from a victim’s device.
- Session fixation: Attackers force a victim to use a predetermined session ID, allowing them to hijack the session once the victim logs in.
Why attackers use it
Why attackers use cookie hijacking
Attackers use cookie hijacking to bypass authentication mechanisms and gain unauthorized access to user accounts, systems, or sensitive information. Since many web applications use cookies to maintain active sessions, stealing these cookies allows attackers to impersonate legitimate users without needing passwords or multi-factor authentication (MFA). This technique is widely used in cybercrime and espionage.
Platform Detections
How to prevent and detect cookie hijacking attacks
Implementing encryption, strong session management, and AI-powered detection solutions can significantly reduce your risk of cookie hijacking attacks. More specifically, organizations should:
- Secure cookie transmission: Use SSL/TLS encryption to protect cookies from being intercepted in transit, and set the Secure flag on cookies to ensure they’re only sent over encrypted connections.
- Implement strong session management: Set short session expiration times to reduce the risk of long-term session hijacking, and use multi-factor authentication (MFA) to prevent unauthorized access even if a session is hijacked.
- Monitor activity: Monitor for suspicious session activity, such as unexpected geolocation changes or multiple concurrent logins.
- Use threat detection and response: Deploy a network detection and response solution to monitor for anomalous session activity and detect man in the middle attacks in real time. This should be in addition to endpoint security tools preventing malware that could extract session cookies.
Vectra AI uses AI-driven threat detection to identify attackers based on their behaviors — unusual account activity, unauthorized access attempts, potential MitM attacks, and more. This enables security teams to detect and respond to session hijacking before it leads to a full account takeover.
