No tool, no matter how cool, replaces knowledge very well. Of course, Wireshark can’t do everything.įirst of all, it can’t help a user who has little understanding of network protocols. Those new to information security can use Wireshark as a tool to understand network traffic analysis, how communication takes place when particular protocols are involved and where it goes wrong when certain issues occur. Additionally, Wireshark can be used as a learning tool. Wireshark is a safe tool used by government agencies, educational institutions, corporations, small businesses and nonprofits alike to troubleshoot network issues. It’s a major part of any IT pro’s toolkit – and hopefully, the IT pro has the knowledge to use it. The contents of suspect network transactions and identify bursts of network traffic. Cybersecurity professionals often use Wireshark to trace connections, view Wireshark has many uses, including troubleshooting networks that have performance issues.

After all, when using Wireshark on a networkĬonnection (or a flashlight in a cave), you’re effectively using a tool to hunt around tunnels and tubes to see what you can see. Folks who use Wireshark on a network are kind of like those who use flashlights to see what cool things they can find. Packet sniffing can be compared to spelunking – going inside a cave and hiking around. It also allows you to visualize entire conversations and network streams.įigure 1: Viewing a packet capture in Wireshark Visualization: Wireshark, like any good packet sniffer, allows you to dive right into the very middle of a network packet.By applying a filter, you can obtain just the information you need to see.

Filtering: Wireshark is capable of slicing and dicing all of this random live data using filters.

Packet Capture: Wireshark listens to a network connection in real time and then grabs entire streams of traffic – quite possibly tens of thousands of packets at a time.Like any other packet sniffer, Wireshark does three things: Wireshark is the most often-used packet sniffer in the world. Packet is the name given to a discrete unit of data in a typical Ethernet network. Wireshark is a network protocol analyzer, or an application that captures packets from a network connection, such as from your computer to your home office or the internet. What is phishing? Understand the definition as well as how to prevent and protect against it, from CompTIA.

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