A security analyst is reviewing authentication logs from a corporate web application. The logs show thousands of failed login attempts over the past hour. Each attempt uses a different username, but all attempts use the same password 'Spring2024!'. The source IP addresses are widely distributed across several different geographic regions. Which type of attack is the analyst most likely observing?

Brute-force attack

A brute-force attack typically targets a single username and attempts many different passwords against it. The observed pattern shows many usernames with a single password, which does not match this definition.

Credential stuffing attack

Credential stuffing uses lists of known username-password pairs from previous breaches. The logs show a single password repeated across all attempts, not unique passwords paired with specific usernames.

Dictionary attack

A dictionary attack typically tries many common passwords against a single user account. The log shows the opposite: one password being tried against many users.

What does this SY0-701 question test?

Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.

What is the correct answer to this question?

The correct answer is: Password spraying attack — The pattern of many different usernames all using the same password is characteristic of a password spraying attack. Attackers use this technique to bypass account lockout policies that normally lock an account after a few failed attempts with different passwords. By trying a single common password across many accounts, the attacker avoids triggering lockouts while still attempting to gain access to any account with a weak or predictable password.

What should I do if I get this SY0-701 question wrong?

Then try more questions from the same exam bank and focus on understanding why the wrong options are tempting.