ISC2 CC Network Security Practice Question
A security analyst notices unusual traffic on the network. Using Wireshark, they capture packets and see that an attacker is reading all unencrypted data from the network segment. Which type of attack is most likely being performed?
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
✓
Sniffing / Eavesdropping
Sniffing or eavesdropping involves capturing network traffic to read data. In this scenario, unencrypted data is being read, which is characteristic of sniffing.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Spoofing
Why it's wrong here
Spoofing involves forging source addresses, not capturing traffic.
- ✗
DoS
Why it's wrong here
DoS overwhelms resources, not capture traffic.
- ✓
Sniffing / Eavesdropping
Why this is correct
Correct. Sniffing captures unencrypted traffic, as seen in the scenario.
- ✗
Man-in-the-middle
Why it's wrong here
MITM involves intercepting and potentially altering communications, not just reading.
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
Courseiva writes every CC question from scratch — 976 in total, each with an explanation and a wrong-answer breakdown. None are copied from real exams or dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This CC practice question is part of Courseiva's free ISC2 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 CC exam.