The man-in-the-middle attack (often abbreviated MITM, also known as a bucket brigade attack, or sometimes Janus attack^{[citation needed]}) in cryptography and computer security is a form of active eavesdropping in which the attacker makes independent connections with the victims and relays messages between them, making them believe that they are talking directly to each other over a private connection, when in fact the entire conversation is controlled by the attacker. The attacker must be able to intercept all messages going between the two victims and inject new ones, which is straightforward in many circumstances (for example, an attacker within reception range of an unencrypted Wi-Fi wireless access point, can insert himself as a man-in-the-middle).^{[citation needed]}

A man-in-the-middle attack can succeed only when the attacker can impersonate each endpoint to the satisfaction of the other—it is an attack on (or lack of) mutual authentication. Most cryptographic protocols include some form of endpoint authentication specifically to prevent MITM attacks. For example, SSL can authenticate one or both parties using a mutually trusted certification authority.

Need for additional transfer over a secure channel[link]

With the exception of Interlock Protocol, all cryptographic systems that are secure against MITM attacks require an additional exchange or transmission of information over some kind of secure channel. Many key agreement methods have been developed, with different security requirements for the secure channel.^{[citation needed]}

Example of an attack[link]

Illustration of man-in-the-middle attack.

Suppose Alice wishes to communicate with Bob. Meanwhile, Mallory wishes to intercept the conversation to eavesdrop and possibly deliver a false message to Bob.

First, Alice asks Bob for his public key. If Bob sends his public key to Alice, but Mallory is able to intercept it, a man-in-the-middle attack can begin. Mallory sends a forged message to Alice that claims to be from Bob, but instead includes Mallory's public key.

Alice, believing this public key to be Bob's, encrypts her message with Mallory's key and sends the enciphered message back to Bob. Mallory again intercepts, deciphers the message using her private key, possibly alters it if she wants, and re-enciphers it using the public key Bob originally sent to Alice. When Bob receives the newly enciphered message, he believes it came from Alice.

1. Alice sends a message to Bob, which is intercepted by Mallory:

Alice "Hi Bob, it's Alice. Give me your key"-->  Mallory      Bob

2. Mallory relays this message to Bob; Bob cannot tell it is not really from Alice:

Alice      Mallory "Hi Bob, it's Alice. Give me your key"-->   Bob

3. Bob responds with his encryption key:

Alice      Mallory   <--[Bob's_key] Bob

4. Mallory replaces Bob's key with her own, and relays this to Alice, claiming that it is Bob's key:

Alice   <--[Mallory's_key] Mallory      Bob

5. Alice encrypts a message with what she believes to be Bob's key, thinking that only Bob can read it:

Alice "Meet me at the bus stop!"[encrypted with Mallory's key]-->   Mallory      Bob

6. However, because it was actually encrypted with Mallory's key, Mallory can decrypt it, read it, modify it (if desired), re-encrypt with Bob's key, and forward it to Bob:

Alice      Mallory "Meet me in the windowless van at 22nd Ave!"[encrypted with Bob's key]-->   Bob

7. Bob thinks that this message is a secure communication from Alice.

This example shows the need for Alice and Bob to have some way to ensure that they are truly using each other's public keys, rather than the public key of an attacker. Otherwise, such attacks are generally possible, in principle, against any message sent using public-key technology. Fortunately, there are a variety of techniques that help defend against MITM attacks.

Defenses against the attack[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

Various defenses against MITM attacks use authentication techniques that are based on^{[citation needed]}:

• Public key infrastructures
  • PKI mutual authentication The main defence in a PKI scenario is mutual authentication. In this case as well as the application validating the user (not much use if the application is rogue) - the users devices validates the application - hence distinguishing rogue applications from genuine applications^{[citation needed]}
• Stronger mutual authentication, such as:
  • Secret keys (which are usually high information entropy secrets, and thus more secure), or
  • Passwords (which are usually low information entropy secrets, and thus less secure)
• Latency examination, such as with long Cryptographic hash function calculations that lead into tens of seconds; if both parties take 20 seconds normally, and the calculation takes 60 seconds to reach each party, this can indicate a third party
• Second (secure) channel verification
• One-time pads are immune to MITM attacks, assuming the security and trust of the one-time pad.
• Carry-forward verification
• Testing is being carried out on deleting compromised certificates from issuing authorities on the actual computers and compromised certificates are being exported to sandbox area before removal for analysis

The integrity of public keys must generally be assured in some manner, but need not be secret. Passwords and shared secret keys have the additional secrecy requirement. Public keys can be verified by a Certificate Authority, whose public key is distributed through a secure channel (for example, with a web browser or OS installation). Public keys can also be verified by a web of trust that distributes public keys through a secure channel (for example by face-to-face meetings).

See key-agreement protocol for a classification of protocols that use various forms of keys and passwords to prevent man-in-the-middle attacks.

Forensic analysis of MITM attacks[link]

Captured network traffic from what is suspected to be a MITM attack can be analyzed in order to determine if it really was a MITM attack or not. Important evidence to analyze when doing network forensics of a suspected SSL MITM attack include:^[1]

• IP address of the server
• DNS name of the server
• X.509 certificate of the server
  • Is the certificate self signed?
  • Is the certificate signed by a trusted CA?
  • Has the certificate been revoked?
  • Has the certificate been changed recently?
  • Do other clients, elsewhere on the Internet, also get the same certificate?

Quantum cryptography[link]

Quantum cryptography protocols typically authenticate part or all of their classical communication with an unconditionally secure authentication scheme e.g. Wegman-Carter authentication.^[2]

Beyond cryptography[link]

A notable non-cryptographic man-in-the-middle attack was perpetrated by one version of a Belkin wireless network router in 2003. Periodically, it would take over an HTTP connection being routed through it: this would fail to pass the traffic on to destination, but instead itself respond as the intended server. The reply it sent, in place of the web page the user had requested, was an advertisement for another Belkin product. After an outcry from technically literate users, this 'feature' was removed from later versions of the router's firmware.^[3]

Another example of a non-cryptographic man-in-the-middle attack is the "Turing porn farm." Brian Warner says this is a "conceivable attack" that spammers could use to defeat CAPTCHAs.^[4] The spammer sets up a pornographic web site where access requires that the user solves the CAPTCHAs in question. However, Jeff Atwood points out that this attack is merely theoretical — there was no evidence by 2006 that any spammer had ever built a Turing porn farm.^[5] However, as reported in an October, 2007 news story, spammers have indeed built a Windows game in which users type in CAPTCHAs acquired from the Yahoo webmail service, and are rewarded with pornographic pictures.^[6] This allows the spammers to create temporary free email accounts with which to send out spam.

Implementations[link]

This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. Please improve this article by removing excessive or inappropriate external links, and converting useful links where appropriate into footnote references. (March 2012)

• dsniff - A tool for SSH and SSL MITM attacks
• Cain and Abel - A Windows GUI tool which can perform MITM attacks, along with sniffing and ARP poisoning
• Ettercap - A tool for LAN based MITM attacks
• Karma - A tool that uses 802.11 Evil Twin attacks to perform MITM attacks
• AirJack - A tool that demonstrates 802.11 based MITM attacks
• SSLStrip A tool for SSL based MITM attacks.
• SSLSniff A tool for SSL based MITM attacks. Originally was made to exploit a flaw^[7] in Internet Explorer.
• Intercepter-NG - A network password sniffer for windows with ARP poisoning abilities. Includes SSLStrip for SSL based MITM attacks.
• Mallory - A transparent TCP and UDP MiTMing proxy. Extensible to MiTM SSL, SSH, and many other protocols.
• wsniff - A tool for 802.11 HTTP/HTTPS based MITM attacks
• an additional card reader and a method to intercept key-presses on an Automated teller machine

See also[link]

• Man-in-the-browser — a type of web browser MITM
• Boy-in-the-browser — a simpler type of web browser MITM
• Aspidistra transmitter — A British radio transmitter used for World War II “intrusion” operations, an early man-in-the-middle attack.
• Babington Plot — The plot against Elizabeth I of England, where Walsingham intercepted the correspondence.
• Computer security — The design of secure computer systems.
• Cryptanalysis — The art of deciphering encrypted messages with incomplete knowledge of how they were encrypted.
• Digital signature — A cryptographic guarantee of the authenticity of a text, usually the result of a calculation only the author is expected to be able to perform.
• Interlock Protocol — A specific protocol to circumvent a man-in-the-middle attack when the keys may have been compromised.
• Key management — How to manage cryptographic keys, including generation, exchange and storage.
• Key-agreement protocol — A protocol for establishing a key in which both parties can have confidence.
• Mutual authentication — How communicating parties establish confidence in one another's identities.
• Password-authenticated key agreement — A protocol for establishing a key using a password.
• Quantum cryptography — The use of quantum mechanics to provide security in cryptography (while older methods rely on one-way functions).
• Secure channel — A way of communicating resistant to interception and tampering.
• Spoofing attack

References[link]

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2012)

External links[link]

• Non-cryptographic MITM attack involving nanny references

Bee Gees
The Bee Gees performing on Dutch television in 1968. From left to right: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb
Background information
Genres	Pop, pop rock, disco, blue-eyed soul, soft rock
Years active	1958–2003 2009–2012
Labels	RSO, Warner Bros., Festival, Polydor, Atco
Website	www.beegees.com
Past members
Barry Gibb Robin Gibb Maurice Gibb Colin Petersen Vince Melouney Geoff Bridgford Alan Kendall Dennis Bryon Blue Weaver

The Bee Gees were a musical group founded in 1958. The group's line-up consisted of brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio were successful for most of their decades of recording music, but they had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a pop act in the late 1960s/early 1970s, and as prominent performers of the disco music era in the late 1970s.

The group sang three-part tight harmonies that were instantly recognisable; Robin's clear vibrato lead was a hallmark of their earlier hits, while Barry's R&B falsetto became their signature sound during the late 1970s and 1980s. The brothers wrote all of their own hits, as well as writing and producing several major hits for other artists.

Born in the Isle of Man to English parents, the Gibb brothers lived their first few years in Chorlton, Manchester, England, then moved in the late 1950s to Redcliffe, Queensland, Australia, where they began their musical careers.^[1] After achieving their first chart success in Australia with "Spicks and Specks" (their 12th single), they returned to the United Kingdom in January 1967 where producer Robert Stigwood began promoting them to a worldwide audience.

It has been estimated that the Bee Gees' career record sales total more than 220 million,^[2] ranking them among the best-selling music artists of all time. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997;^[3] the presenter of the award to "Britain's first family of harmony" was Brian Wilson, historical leader of the Beach Boys, a "family act" also featuring three harmonising brothers.^[4] The Bee Gees' Hall of Fame citation says "Only Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Michael Jackson, Garth Brooks and Paul McCartney have outsold the Bee Gees".^[3]

Following Maurice's sudden death in January 2003, Barry and Robin Gibb retired the group's name after 45 years of activity. In 2009, however, Robin announced that he and Barry had agreed that the Bee Gees would re-form and perform again.^[5] Robin died in May 2012 after a prolonged bout of cancer.^[6]

History[link]

Early years[link]

Plaque at Maitland Terrace/Strang Road intersection in Union Mills, Isle of Man.

Barry Gibb (b. 1946) and fraternal twin brothers Robin (1949–2012) and Maurice Gibb (1949–2003) were born on the Isle of Man, but the family returned to father Hugh Gibb's home town of Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester, England where they went to Oswald Road Primary School, in the early 1950s where the boys began to sing in harmony. The story is told that they were going to lip sync to a record in the local Gaumont cinema (as other children had done on previous weeks) and as they were running to the theatre, the heavy 78-RPM record broke. The brothers had to sing live and received such a positive response from the audience that they decided to pursue a singing career.^[7]

In 1958 the Gibb family, including infant brother, Andy (1958–1988), emigrated to Redcliffe in Queensland, Australia. The young brothers began performing where they could to raise pocket money. First called the Rattlesnakes, later Wee Johnny Hayes & the Bluecats, they were introduced to radio DJ Bill Gates by racetrack promoter Bill Goode (who saw them perform at Brisbane's Speedway Circuit). Gates renamed them the "Bee Gees" after his and Goode's initials – thus the name was not specifically a reference to "Brothers Gibb", despite popular belief.^[8]

By 1960 the Bee Gees were featured on television shows. In the next few years they began working regularly at resorts on the Queensland coast. For his songwriting, Barry sparked the interest of Australian star Col Joye, who helped them get a record deal with Festival Records subsidiary, Leedon Records, in 1963 under the name "Bee Gees." The three released two or three singles a year, while Barry supplied additional songs to other Australian artists. From 1963 to 1966 the Gibb family lived at 171 Bunnerong Road, Maroubra in Sydney.^[9]

A minor hit in 1965, "Wine and Women", led to the group's first LP The Bee Gees Sing and Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs. By 1966 Festival was, however, on the verge of dropping them from the Leedon roster because of their perceived lack of commercial success. It was at this time that they met American-born songwriter, producer and entrepreneur, Nat Kipner, who had just been appointed A&R manager of a new independent label, Spin Records. Kipner briefly took over as the group's manager and successfully negotiated their transfer to Spin in exchange for Festival being granted the Australian distribution rights to the group's recordings.^{[citation needed]}

Through Kipner the Bee Gees met engineer-producer, Ossie Byrne. He produced (or co-produced with Kipner) many of the earlier Spin recordings, most of which were cut at his own small self-built St Clair Studio in the Sydney suburb of Hurstville. Byrne gave the Gibb brothers virtually unlimited access to St Clair Studio over a period of several months in mid-1966. The group later acknowledged that this enabled them to greatly improve their skills as recording artists. During this productive time they recorded a large batch of original material—including the song that would become their first major hit, "Spicks and Specks" (on which Byrne played the trumpet coda) – as well as cover versions of current hits by overseas acts such as The Beatles. They regularly collaborated with other local musicians, including members of beat band Steve & The Board, led by Steve Kipner, Nat's teenage son.

Frustrated by their lack of success, the Gibbs decided to return to England in late 1966. Ossie Byrne travelled with them, and Colin Petersen, who eventually became the group's drummer, followed soon after. While at sea in January 1967, they learned that "Spicks and Specks" had been awarded Best Single of the Year by Go-Set, Australia's most popular and influential music newspaper.

Late 1960s: first international fame[link]

The Bee Gees in 1967.

Before their departure from Australia to England, Hugh Gibb sent demos to Brian Epstein who managed The Beatles and was director of NEMS, a British music store and promoter. Brian Epstein had passed the demo tapes to Robert Stigwood, who had recently joined NEMS. After an audition with Stigwood in February 1967, the Bee Gees were signed to a five-year contract whereby Polydor Records would be their record label in the United Kingdom and ATCO Records would be the United States distributor. Work quickly began on the group's first international album, and Robert Stigwood launched a promotional campaign to coincide with its release.

Stigwood proclaimed that the Bee Gees were "The Most Significant New Talent Of 1967" and thus began the immediate comparison to The Beatles.^[10] Their second British single (their first UK 45 rpm issued was "Spicks and Specks"), "New York Mining Disaster 1941", was issued to radio stations with a blank white label listing only the song title. Some DJs immediately assumed this was a new single by The Beatles and started playing the song in heavy rotation. This helped the song climb into the Top 20 in both the United Kingdom and the United States. No such chicanery was needed to boost the Bee Gees' second single, "To Love Somebody", into the US Top 20. Originally written for Otis Redding, "To Love Somebody" was a soulful ballad sung by Barry, which has since become a pop standard covered by hundreds of artists including Gram Parsons, Rod Stewart, Bonnie Tyler, Janis Joplin, The Animals, Nina Simone, Jimmy Somerville and Michael Bolton. Another single, "Holiday", was released in the United States, peaking at No. 16. The parent album, Bee Gees 1st (their first internationally), peaked at No. 7 in the United States and No. 8 in the United Kingdom.

Following the success of Bee Gees 1st, the band (which now consisted of Barry on rhythm guitar, Maurice on bass, Vince Melouney on lead guitar and Colin Petersen on drums),.^[10] began work on the act's second album. Released in late 1967, Horizontal repeated the success of their first album, featuring the No. 1 UK single "Massachusetts" (a No. 11 US hit), and the No. 7 UK single "World". The sound of the album Horizontal had a more "rock" sound than their previous release, though ballads like "And The Sun Will Shine" and "Really And Sincerely" were also prominent. The Horizontal album reached No. 12 in the US, and No. 16 in the UK promoting the record, the Bee Gees made their first appearances in America, playing live concerts and television shows such as The Ed Sullivan Show and Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In. Two more singles followed in early 1968, the ballad "Words" (No. 15 US, No. 8 UK) and the double A-sided single "Jumbo" b/w "The Singer Sang His Song". "Jumbo" was the Bee Gees' least successful single to date only reaching No. 57 in the US, and No. 25 in the UK. The Bee Gees felt that "The Singer Sang His Song" was the stronger of the two sides, an opinion shared by listeners in the Netherlands, who made it a No. 3 hit. Further Bee Gees chart singles followed: "I've Gotta Get a Message to You" (No. 8 US, No. 1 UK) and "I Started A Joke" (No. 6 US), both culled from the band's third album Idea. Idea was another Top 20 album in the US (No. 17) and the UK (No. 4). Following the tour and TV special to promote the album, Vince Melouney left the group, feeling that he wanted to play more of a blues style music than the Gibbs were writing. Melouney did achieve one feat while with the Bee Gees—his composition "Such A Shame" (from Idea) is the only song on any Bee Gees album not written by a Gibb brother.

By 1969, the cracks began to show within the group. Robin began to feel that Stigwood had been favouring Barry as the frontman. Their next album, which was to have been a concept album called Masterpeace, evolved into the double-album Odessa. Most rock critics felt this was the best Bee Gees album of the '60s, with its progressive rock feel on the title track, the country-flavoured "Marley Purt Drive" and "Give Your Best", and signature ballads such as "Melody Fair" and "First of May"; the last of which became the only single from the album, and was a minor hit. Feeling that the flipside, "Lamplight" should have been the A-side, Robin quit the group in mid-1969 and launched a solo career. Robin Gibb saw brief success in Europe with the No. 2 hit "Saved By The Bell" and the album Robin's Reign. Barry and Maurice continued as the Bee Gees, even recruiting their sister Lesley to appear with them on stage.

The first of many Bee Gees compilations, Best of Bee Gees was released, featuring the non-LP single "Words" plus the Australian hit "Spicks and Specks" The CD release replaces "Spicks and Specks" with another non-LP single "Tomorrow Tomorrow", because Polydor could no longer secure the rights to the Australian track. "Tomorrow Tomorrow" was a moderate hit in the UK reaching No. 23, but stalled at No. 54 in the US. The compilation reached the Top Ten in both the US and the UK.

While Robin was off on his own, Barry, Maurice, and Colin continued on as the Bee Gees, recording their next album, Cucumber Castle. There was also a TV special filmed to accompany the album, which aired on the BBC in 1971. Colin Petersen played drums on the tracks recorded for the album, but was fired from the group after filming began and his parts were edited out of the final cut of the film. After Colin was fired, Australian drummer Geoff Bridgford was recruited to complete the recording of songs for Cucumber Castle. The leadoff single, "Don't Forget to Remember" was a big hit in the UK reaching No. 2, but a disappointment in the US, only reaching No. 73. The next 2 singles, "I.O.I.O." and "If I Only Had My Mind on Something Else" barely scraped the charts, and following the release of the album, Barry and Maurice parted ways. It seemed that the Bee Gees were finished. Barry recorded a solo album which never saw official release, though "I'll Kiss Your Memory" was released as a single, without much interest. Meanwhile, Maurice released the single "Railroad", and starred in the West End musical Sing A Rude Song.

Early 1970s[link]

The three brothers reunited in the later part of 1970 penning a series of songs about heartache and loneliness. During this period they became a four piece band joined again by Australian drummer Geoff Bridgford who after playing on the 2 Years On album and Trafalgar album became the last non-Gibb brother to be a member of the Bee Gees. Although they had lost traction on the British charts, the Bee Gees hit No. 3 in America with "Lonely Days" (from the reunion LP 2 Years On) and had their first US No. 1 with "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" (from Trafalgar). The trio's talents were included in the soundtrack for the 1971 film Melody as they performed several songs for the title. In 1972, they hit No. 16 in America with the single "My World" and "Run To Me" from the LP To Whom It May Concern; the latter also returned them to the British top ten for the first time in three years.

By 1973, however, the Bee Gees were in a rut. The album, Life in a Tin Can, released on RSO Records and its lead-off single, "Saw a New Morning," sold poorly with the single peaking at No. 94. This was followed by an unreleased album (known as A Kick in the Head Is Worth Eight in the Pants). A second compilation album, Best of Bee Gees, Volume 2 was released in 1973, though it did not repeat the success of Volume 1.

On the advice of Ahmet Ertegün, head of their US label Atlantic Records, Stigwood arranged for the group to record with famed soul music producer Arif Mardin. The resulting LP, Mr. Natural, included fewer ballads and foreshadowed the R&B direction of the rest of their career. But when it too failed to attract much interest, Mardin encouraged them to work with the soul music style.

The brothers attempted to assemble a live stage band that could replicate their studio sound. Lead guitarist Alan Kendall had come on board in 1971, but did not have much to do until Mr. Natural. For that album, they added drummer Dennis Bryon, and they later added ex-Strawbs keyboard player Blue Weaver, completing the late 1970s "Bee Gees band". Maurice, who had previously performed on piano, guitar, organ, mellotron, and bass guitar, as well as exotica like mandolin and Moog synthesiser, now confined himself to bass onstage.

At Eric Clapton's suggestion, the brothers relocated to Miami, Florida, early in 1975 to record. After starting off with ballads, they eventually heeded the urging of Mardin and Stigwood and crafted more rhythmic disco songs, including their second US No. 1, "Jive Talkin'", along with US No. 7 "Nights on Broadway." The band liked the resulting new sound, and this time the public agreed, sending the LP Main Course up the charts. This was their second album to have two US top-10 singles since 1968's Idea. Main Course also became their first charting R&B album. Mardin was unable to work with the group afterwards, but the Bee Gees enlisted Albhy Galuten and Karl Richardson who had worked with Mardin during the Main Course sessions. This production team would carry the Bee Gees through the rest of the 1970s.

The next album, Children of the World, was drenched in Barry's newfound falsetto and Weaver's synthesiser disco licks. Led off by the single "You Should Be Dancing," it pushed the Bee Gees to a level of stardom they had not previously achieved in the US, though their new R&B/disco sound was not as popular with some die hard fans from the 1960s. The Bee Gees' band was now closer to a rock act, with rhythm guitar and real drums behind the falsetto.

[edit] Late 1970s: Saturday Night Fever

Following a successful live album, Here at Last... Bee Gees... Live, the Bee Gees agreed with Stigwood to participate in the creation of the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. It would be the turning point of their career. The cultural impact of both the film and the soundtrack was seismic, not only in the United States, but in the rest of the world as well, bringing the nascent disco scene mainstream.

The band's involvement in the film did not begin until post-production. As John Travolta asserted, "The Bee Gees weren't even involved in the movie in the beginning ... I was dancing to Stevie Wonder and Boz Scaggs."^[11] Producer Robert Stigwood commissioned the Bee Gees to create the songs for the film. The brothers wrote the songs "virtually in a single weekend" at France's Château d'Hérouville studio.^[11] Barry Gibb remembered the reaction when Stigwood and music supervisor Bill Oakes arrived and listened to the demos:

Bill Oakes, who supervised the soundtrack, asserts that Saturday Night Fever did not begin the disco craze; rather, it prolonged it: "Disco had run its course. These days, Fever is credited with kicking off the whole disco thing–-it really didn't. Truth is, it breathed new life into a genre that was actually dying."^[11]

Three Bee Gees singles ("How Deep Is Your Love", "Stayin' Alive", and "Night Fever") reached No. 1 in the United States and many countries around the world, launching the most popular period of the disco era. They also penned the song "If I Can't Have You" which became a No. 1 hit for Yvonne Elliman, while the Bee Gees' own version was the B-Side of "Stayin' Alive." Such was the popularity of Saturday Night Fever that two different versions of the song "More Than a Woman" received airplay, one by the Bee Gees, which was relegated to album track, and another by Tavares, which was the hit. The Gibb sound was inescapable. During an eight-month period beginning in the Christmas season of 1977, six songs written by the brothers held the No. 1 position on the US charts for 25 of 32 consecutive weeks—three of their own releases, two for brother Andy Gibb, and the Yvonne Elliman single.

Fueled by the movie's success, the soundtrack broke multiple industry records, becoming the highest-selling album in recording history to that point. With more than 40 million copies sold, Saturday Night Fever is among music's top five best selling soundtrack albums. It is currently calculated as the 4th highest-selling album worldwide.^[12]

During this era, Barry and Robin also wrote "Emotion" for an old friend, Australian vocalist Samantha Sang, who made it a Top Ten hit (the Bee Gees sang backing vocals). Barry also wrote the title song to the movie version of the Broadway musical Grease for Frankie Valli to perform, which went to No. 1. During this period, the Bee Gees' younger brother Andy followed his older siblings into a music career, and enjoyed considerable success. Produced by Barry, Andy Gibb's first three singles all topped the US charts. In March 1978, the Bee Gees held the top 2 positions on the US Charts with "Night Fever" and "Stayin' Alive", the first time this had happened since The Beatles. On the US Billboard Hot 100 chart for 25 March 1978, five songs written by the Gibbs were in the US top ten at the same time: "Night Fever", "Stayin' Alive", "If I Can't Have You", "Emotion" and "Love is Thicker Than Water". Such chart dominance hadn't been seen since April 1964, when The Beatles had all five of the top five American singles. Barry Gibb became the only songwriter to have four consecutive number one hits in the US breaking the John Lennon and Paul McCartney 1964 record. These songs were "Stayin' Alive", "Love Is Thicker Than Water", "Night Fever", "If I Can't Have You".

The Bee Gees also co-starred with Peter Frampton in the movie Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978) loosely inspired by the classic 1967 album by The Beatles. The film had been heavily promoted prior to release, and was expected to enjoy great commercial success. However, the disjointed film was savaged by the movie critics, and ignored by the public. Though some of its tracks charted, the soundtrack too was a high-profile flop. The single "Oh! Darling", credited to Robin Gibb, reached No. 15 in the US. Previously, the Bee Gees had recorded three Beatles covers—"Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight", "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window" and "Sun King" – for the transitory musical documentary All This and World War II.

The Bee Gees' follow-up to Saturday Night Fever was the Spirits Having Flown album. It yielded three more No. 1 hits: "Too Much Heaven", "Tragedy", and "Love You Inside Out." This gave the act six consecutive No. 1 singles in America within a year and a half (a record surpassed only by Whitney Houston). "Too Much Heaven" ended up as the Bee Gees' musical contribution to the Music for UNICEF Concert at the United Nations General Assembly in January 1979, a benefit organised by the Bee Gees, Robert Stigwood, and David Frost for UNICEF that was broadcast worldwide. The brothers donated the royalties from the song to the charity. Up to 2007, this song has earned over $11 million for UNICEF. During the summer of 1979, the Bee Gees embarked on their largest concert tour covering the US and Canada. The Spirits Having Flown tour capitalised on Bee Gees fever that was sweeping the nation, with sold out concerts in 38 cities. The Bee Gees produced a video for the title track of "Too Much Heaven" directed by Miami-based film-maker, Martin Pitts and produced by Charles Allen. With this video, Pitts and Allen began a long association with the brothers.