FTP Cleartext Communication
Overview
FTP (File Transfer Protocol) transmits all data including credentials in plaintext. Network monitoring captures:
- Login credentials (USER/PASS commands)
- All file transfers
- Directory listings
FTP is deprecated and should be replaced with SFTP (SSH File Transfer Protocol) or FTPS (FTP over TLS).
Remediation
- Use SFTP instead of FTP
- If FTP must be used, require explicit TLS (
AUTH TLS) — FTPS - Use
Paramiko(Python),ssh2(Node.js), or native SSH libraries