CEH Practice Question: Malware, Social Engineering and Network Attacks
A security analyst captures network traffic and sees a sequence of ARP replies with the same IP address mapping to different MAC addresses within a short period. Which attack is indicated?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse ARP poisoning with MAC flooding because both involve MAC addresses and network manipulation, but MAC flooding targets the switch's CAM table, not the host's ARP cache, and uses many different MACs, not the same IP mapped to multiple MACs.
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
✓
ARP poisoning
B is correct because ARP poisoning (also called ARP spoofing) involves sending forged ARP replies that map a target IP address (e.g., the default gateway) to the attacker's MAC address. The rapid sequence of ARP replies with the same IP but different MACs is a classic indicator of an active ARP poisoning attack, where the attacker floods the network to corrupt the ARP cache of hosts.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
DNS spoofing
Why it's wrong here
DNS spoofing involves an attacker intercepting or manipulating DNS queries and responses to redirect users to malicious websites or servers. The attacker sends forged DNS records, typically A records, to associate a legitimate domain name with an attacker-controlled IP address. This attack specifically targets the Domain Name System's resolution process, not the Address Resolution Protocol, and therefore does not involve the generation of multiple ARP replies for a single IP address.
- ✓
ARP poisoning
Why this is correct
ARP poisoning, also known as ARP spoofing, is a man-in-the-middle attack where an attacker sends forged ARP reply messages onto a local area network. These malicious replies associate the attacker's MAC address with the IP address of another host, such as the default gateway or another workstation. By continuously sending these fake ARP replies, the attacker can trick multiple devices into updating their ARP caches with incorrect information, thereby redirecting traffic intended for the legitimate IP to the attacker's machine. This directly explains the observation of multiple ARP replies for one IP.
- ✗
DHCP starvation
Why it's wrong here
DHCP starvation is a denial-of-service attack where an attacker floods a DHCP server with numerous DHCP requests using spoofed MAC addresses. The goal is to exhaust the server's available IP address pool, preventing legitimate clients from obtaining network configurations. While this attack disrupts network services, it operates at the application layer (DHCP) and does not involve the manipulation or generation of multiple Address Resolution Protocol replies for a single IP address.
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MAC flooding
Why it's wrong here
MAC flooding is an attack that overwhelms a network switch's Content Addressable Memory (CAM) table by sending a large number of frames with unique, spoofed source MAC addresses. When the CAM table becomes full, the switch may enter a "fail-open" mode, behaving like a hub and broadcasting all incoming traffic to all ports. Although this attack can facilitate sniffing, it primarily targets the switch's learning mechanism and does not inherently involve the generation of multiple ARP replies for a single IP address.
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.