- A
ARP poisoning
Why wrong: ARP poisoning involves sending forged ARP messages to associate the attacker's MAC with a legitimate IP address. This does not directly target DHCP.
- B
DNS amplification
Why wrong: DNS amplification is a type of DDoS attack that uses misconfigured DNS servers to flood a target with traffic. It is not related to DHCP.
- C
DHCP starvation
The scenario describes a classic DHCP starvation attack. The attacker floods the DHCP server with Discover messages, causing it to exhaust its address pool. Legitimate clients then cannot obtain IP addresses.
- D
Rogue DHCP server
Why wrong: A rogue DHCP server attack involves an unauthorized server offering IP addresses to clients, potentially intercepting traffic. Here, the legitimate server is being flooded, not spoofed.
Quick Answer
The correct answer is a DHCP starvation attack. This is because the attacker sends continuous DHCP Discover messages from a single MAC address but never sends the DHCP Request to complete the DORA handshake, thereby exhausting the server’s IP address pool and preventing legitimate clients from obtaining leases. On the CompTIA Network+ N10-009 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of the DHCP four-step process and how attackers exploit its incomplete state; a common trap is confusing this with a DHCP spoofing attack, which involves a rogue server instead. A reliable memory tip is to think of “Discover without Request” as a “starvation” of resources—the attacker is flooding the pool without ever eating the offered lease.
N10-009 Network Security Practice Question
This N10-009 practice question tests your understanding of network security. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A security analyst notices that the DHCP server is responding to a large number of DHCP Discover messages from a single MAC address, but that client never sends a DHCP Request to complete the lease. This pattern repeats continuously. Which type of attack is most likely occurring?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue:
"most likely"Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Clue:
"never"Why it matters: Absolute qualifier. True only if the statement has zero exceptions — be cautious of options that seem obvious but break down in edge cases.
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
DHCP starvation
Option C is correct because the described behavior—a single MAC address sending continuous DHCP Discover messages without completing the lease with a DHCP Request—is the hallmark of a DHCP starvation attack. The attacker exhausts the DHCP server's IP address pool by claiming all available leases, preventing legitimate clients from obtaining IP addresses. This attack targets the DHCP protocol's four-step DORA (Discover, Offer, Request, Acknowledge) process by never completing the handshake.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
ARP poisoning
- ✗
DNS amplification
- ✓
DHCP starvation
Why this is correct
The scenario describes a classic DHCP starvation attack. The attacker floods the DHCP server with Discover messages, causing it to exhaust its address pool. Legitimate clients then cannot obtain IP addresses.
Clue confirmation
The clue words "most likely", "never" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Rogue DHCP server
Why it's wrong here
A rogue DHCP server attack involves an unauthorized server offering IP addresses to clients, potentially intercepting traffic. Here, the legitimate server is being flooded, not spoofed.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates confuse DHCP starvation with a rogue DHCP server attack, but the key distinction is that starvation exhausts the legitimate server's pool via incomplete handshakes, while a rogue server offers its own IPs to intercept traffic.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
In a DHCP starvation attack, the attacker typically spoofs the source MAC address for each Discover message to bypass per-MAC rate limiting, though in this scenario a single MAC is used (possibly due to lack of spoofing or a simpler script). The DHCP server, following RFC 2131, must respond to each Discover with an Offer, reserving an IP address in its lease database until the Request timeout (usually 60 seconds). In real-world deployments, DHCP snooping on switches can mitigate this by rate-limiting DHCP messages per port or by validating DHCP binding entries.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
- Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
- Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
- Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A small business has 20 workstations on the 192.168.1.0/24 network and one public IP from its ISP. The router uses PAT (NAT overload) so all 20 devices share one public address using different source ports. NAT questions test whether you understand the four address terms and which direction each translation applies.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this N10-009 question test?
Network Security — This question tests Network Security — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: DHCP starvation — Option C is correct because the described behavior—a single MAC address sending continuous DHCP Discover messages without completing the lease with a DHCP Request—is the hallmark of a DHCP starvation attack. The attacker exhausts the DHCP server's IP address pool by claiming all available leases, preventing legitimate clients from obtaining IP addresses. This attack targets the DHCP protocol's four-step DORA (Discover, Offer, Request, Acknowledge) process by never completing the handshake.
What should I do if I get this N10-009 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "most likely", "never". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Same concept, more angles
1 more ways this is tested on N10-009
These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. A security analyst is reviewing DHCP server logs and notices that a single MAC address is sending an extremely high number of DHCP discover packets. The DHCP server is responding, but the client never sends a DHCP request. Which type of attack is most likely occurring?
hard- ✓ A.A) DHCP starvation
- B.B) ARP poisoning
- C.C) MAC flooding
- D.D) DNS spoofing
Why A: A DHCP starvation attack works by flooding the DHCP server with DHCPDISCOVER packets from spoofed MAC addresses, exhausting the server's IP address pool. In this scenario, a single MAC address sending excessive DHCPDISCOVER packets without completing the DORA handshake (no DHCPREQUEST) is a classic indicator of a starvation attack, as the attacker aims to consume all available leases and cause a denial of service for legitimate clients.
Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
This N10-009 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 N10-009 exam.
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