DA0-002 Data Acquisition and Preparation Practice Question
A data team is using web scraping to collect competitor pricing data. The target website has anti-scraping measures like CAPTCHAs and rate limiting. Which approach is most effective?
⚠ Common exam trap
DA0-002 often tests the misconception that increasing request frequency or using a single IP can overcome anti-scraping measures, when in fact these approaches worsen blocking; the correct strategy involves rotation and throttling.
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
✓
Use rotating proxies and respectful delays
Using rotating proxies and respectful delays is the most effective approach because it distributes requests across multiple IP addresses, avoiding rate limiting and IP bans, while delays reduce the load on the target server and mimic human behavior, helping to bypass anti-scraping measures like CAPTCHAs and rate limiting.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Use a single IP address
Why it's wrong here
A single IP address concentrates all requests into one identifiable source, making rate limiting and CAPTCHA challenges trigger faster. One static address suits low-volume scraping of permissive sites, but distributed rotation across many addresses is what defeats IP-based throttling.
- ✗
Disregard robots.txt
Why it's wrong here
Disregarding robots.txt removes a politeness convention but does nothing technically to bypass CAPTCHAs or rate limits, and it invites legal and IP-blocking consequences. Robots.txt governs crawler permissions; it is relevant when scoping which paths may be crawled, not when evading active defences.
- ✓
Use rotating proxies and respectful delays
Why this is correct
Rotating proxies distribute requests across many IP addresses, defeating IP-based rate limiting, while respectful delays reduce request frequency to avoid triggering CAPTCHAs and detection. Together they sustain collection without overwhelming the target site or breaching its defensive thresholds.
- ✗
Increase request frequency
Why it's wrong here
Increasing request frequency intensifies the very behaviour rate limiting is designed to block, triggering longer bans or harder CAPTCHAs. Higher throughput suits unthrottled endpoints; against active anti-scraping defences it accelerates detection rather than evading it.
About these practice questions
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official CompTIA exam blueprint
This DA0-002 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA 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 DA0-002 exam.