CEH Practice Question: Malware, Social Engineering and Network Attacks
A company wants to protect its network from MAC flooding attacks. Which of the following countermeasures is MOST effective?
⚠ Common exam trap
The CEH exam often tests the distinction between passive monitoring tools (like Wireshark) and active security controls (like port security), and the trap here is that candidates confuse detection with prevention, or confuse MAC flooding with ARP spoofing attacks.
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
✓
Enable port security on switches
Enabling port security on switches directly limits the number of MAC addresses that can be learned on a switch port, preventing an attacker from flooding the CAM table with fake MAC addresses. When the configured limit is exceeded, the switch can either drop traffic, shut down the port, or send an alert, effectively stopping the MAC flooding attack at the access layer.
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 Wireshark to monitor for floods
Why it's wrong here
Wireshark is a network protocol analyzer primarily used for passive monitoring and troubleshooting. While it can detect the symptoms of a MAC flooding attack by observing a high volume of MAC address entries or unusual traffic patterns, it lacks any active defense mechanisms. Monitoring tools provide visibility into an ongoing attack but cannot actively block or mitigate the flood to protect the switch's CAM table from being overwhelmed.
- ✗
Disable CAM table learning
Why it's wrong here
Disabling CAM (Content Addressable Memory) table learning would fundamentally break the core function of a network switch. Switches rely on learning MAC addresses to build their CAM table, enabling them to forward frames efficiently to specific destination ports. Without learning, the switch would either flood all incoming frames out every port (like a hub) or drop them, severely degrading network performance and connectivity for legitimate traffic.
- ✓
Enable port security on switches
Why this is correct
Enabling port security on switches is the most effective defense against MAC flooding attacks. This feature allows administrators to configure a maximum number of MAC addresses permitted to be learned on a specific switch port. When the configured limit is exceeded, the switch can be configured to take action, such as shutting down the port, restricting further MAC address learning, or generating an alert, thereby preventing the attacker from overflowing the CAM table.
- ✗
Implement ARP spoofing detection
Why it's wrong here
Implementing ARP spoofing detection mechanisms would not protect against MAC flooding because these are distinct types of attacks operating at different layers of the OSI model. ARP spoofing targets the Address Resolution Protocol at Layer 2/3 to redirect traffic by associating an attacker's MAC address with another device's IP address. MAC flooding, conversely, directly targets the switch's CAM table at Layer 2 by overwhelming it with numerous fake MAC addresses, causing the switch to act as a hub.
Quick reference
Access Control Model Comparison
| Model | Acronym | Who Controls Access? | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discretionary Access Control | DAC | Resource owner | Small teams, file shares |
| Mandatory Access Control | MAC | System / security labels | Classified govt / military |
| Role-Based Access Control | RBAC | Administrator (via roles) | Enterprise environments |
| Attribute-Based Access Control | ABAC | Policy engine (user + resource attributes) | Fine-grained, dynamic policies |
| Rule-Based Access Control | RuBAC | System rules / ACLs | Firewall rules, network ACLs |
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This CEH practice question is part of Courseiva's free EC-Council 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 CEH exam.