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200-201 Practice Question: A help desk receives a phone call from someone…
A help desk receives a phone call from someone claiming to be from IT and requesting a password reset. What type of attack is this?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the distinction between the general category (social engineering) and the specific attack vector (vishing, phishing, smishing), so the trap here is that candidates see 'social engineering' and select it without recognizing that the question asks for the specific type of attack based on the communication method (phone call).
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Vishing
Vishing (voice phishing) is a social engineering attack conducted over voice communication, such as a phone call, where the attacker impersonates a legitimate entity (e.g., IT support) to trick the victim into revealing sensitive information or performing an action like a password reset. This matches the scenario exactly: a phone call from someone claiming to be from IT requesting a password reset.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Social engineering
Why it's wrong here
Social engineering is a broader category; the specific attack here is vishing.
- ✗
Phishing
Why it's wrong here
Phishing is usually via email or messages, not phone calls.
- ✗
Malware
Why it's wrong here
Malware involves malicious software, not phone calls.
- ✓
Vishing
Why this is correct
Vishing is voice phishing conducted over phone calls.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 200-201 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Cisco certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the 200-201 exam.