CEH Footprinting, Reconnaissance and Scanning Practice Question
A penetration tester uses the following Google dork: site:example.com filetype:pdf inurl:confidential. What is the MOST likely goal of this search?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many exam-takers confuse `inurl` (which searches the URL string) with `intext` or content-based search, leading candidates to incorrectly assume the dork finds PDFs containing the word 'confidential' inside the document.
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
✓
Find PDF files on example.com that have 'confidential' in their filename or path
The Google dork `site:example.com filetype:pdf inurl:confidential` combines the `site` operator to restrict results to example.com, `filetype:pdf` to filter for PDF files, and `inurl:confidential` to require that the URL or path contains the word 'confidential'. This targets PDF files whose filename or directory path includes 'confidential', making option C correct. The `inurl` operator matches the URL string, not the file content, so it does not search within the PDF text.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Retrieve all PDF files from example.com regardless of content
Why it's wrong here
This statement is incorrect because the 'inurl:confidential' operator explicitly restricts the search results. It ensures that only PDF files whose URLs contain the string "confidential" are returned, not every PDF file indexed on example.com. Therefore, the dork does not retrieve all PDF files, but a specific subset that matches the URL criteria.
- ✗
Identify all web pages on example.com that link to PDF files
Why it's wrong here
This option is incorrect because the dork 'filetype:pdf' directly searches for and returns indexed PDF files themselves, not web pages that contain links to these files. The operators used ('site:', 'filetype:', 'inurl:') are designed to locate specific file types based on URL characteristics, not to analyze the content of HTML pages for outbound links.
- ✓
Find PDF files on example.com that have 'confidential' in their filename or path
Why this is correct
This option accurately describes the dork's function. The 'inurl:confidential' operator specifically targets URLs that contain the string "confidential," which encompasses both the directory path and the filename components of a URL. When combined with 'filetype:pdf' and 'site:example.com', the dork precisely identifies PDF documents on the specified domain where "confidential" appears within their web address.
- ✗
Discover PDF files that contain the word 'confidential' on example.com
Why it's wrong here
This statement is incorrect because the 'inurl:confidential' operator specifically searches for the string "confidential" within the URL itself, not within the actual textual content of the PDF file. To search for content within documents, a different operator like 'intext:' or a direct keyword search without 'inurl:' would be required, which is not what this dork performs.
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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.