What would be the primary reason a threat actor would launch a MAC address overflow attack?

The primary reason a threat actor would launch a MAC address overflow attack is to disrupt the network. Here's a step-by-step explanation:

1. Understanding MAC Address: A Media Access Control (MAC) address is a unique identifier assigned to a network interface controller (NIC) for use as a network address in communications within a network segment.

2. MAC Address Table: A switch maintains a MAC address table that maps each MAC address on the network to the port on the switch to which the device with that MAC address is connected.

3. MAC Address Overflow Attack: In a MAC address overflow attack, the threat actor floods the switch with packets, each containing different source MAC addresses. The aim is to consume the memory of the switch allocated for the MAC address table.

4. Disruption of Network: Once the switch's MAC address table is full, it can no longer learn new MAC addresses. This forces the switch into a state known as "failopen mode" or "hub mode," where it broadcasts all incoming packets to all ports. This can cause significant network disruption and degradation of network services.

5. Eavesdropping: In some cases, the threat actor may use this technique to eavesdrop on the communication between devices in the network. When the switch is in failopen mode, the threat actor can capture the broadcast packets and potentially gain unauthorized access to sensitive information.

So, the primary reason for a MAC address overflow attack is to disrupt the network, potentially causing downtime, and in some cases, to eavesdrop on network communications.