A VLAN is used to share the physical network while creating virtual segmentations to divide specific groups. For example, a host on VLAN 1 is separated from any host on VLAN 2. Any packets sent between VLANs must go through a router or other layer 3 devices. Security is one of the many reasons network administrators configure VLANs. However, with an exploit known as 'VLAN Hopping', an attacker is able to bypass these security implementations.

Even as public awareness of data breaches grows, the popular conception of what information is sensitive, and how sensitive it is, lags behind the threats that individuals, businesses, and governments face today. The classic model for a data breach is individuals’ login credentials for banking or private identity information like their social security numbers, but there is equal– and in many cases far greater– value in information with less obvious potential for abuse.