ISC2 CC Security Operations Practice Question
An employee receives an email from the CEO asking for an urgent wire transfer to a new vendor. The email address is slightly misspelled. What type of attack is this?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is that candidates may overthink the scenario and pick a more 'technical' attack like shoulder surfing or tailgating, when the defining characteristic — deceptive email impersonation — clearly maps to phishing.
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
✓
Phishing
Phishing is a social engineering attack where an attacker impersonates a trusted entity (here, the CEO) via email to trick the recipient into performing a harmful action, such as transferring funds. The slightly misspelled email address is a classic phishing indicator — attackers register look-alike domains to deceive recipients. This specific CEO-impersonation variant is often called Business Email Compromise (BEC), a form of phishing.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
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Shoulder surfing
Why it's wrong here
Shoulder surfing is direct visual observation of someone entering credentials or data; the attack here arrives remotely by email. It is tempting because it is a genuine social-engineering method, and would be correct if someone watched an employee type a password in public.
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USB drop attack
Why it's wrong here
A USB drop attack relies on planted physical media being plugged into a host; no removable device is involved in this email. It is tempting because it is a real social-engineering vector, and would be correct if infected USB sticks were left in a car park.
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Tailgating
Why it's wrong here
Tailgating is physical entry into a secured area by following an authorised person through a door; no physical access occurs here. It is tempting because it is a real social-engineering technique, and would be correct if an intruder followed staff into a data centre.
- ✓
Phishing
Why this is correct
The misspelled sender address signals a spoofed identity, the defining trait of phishing: fraudulent email crafted to impersonate a trusted executive and trigger urgent action. Business email compromise is the specific subtype, but phishing correctly names the broader attack category the stem describes.
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Related to this question
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Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery
Key term
Phishing
Phishing is a type of cyber attack where criminals impersonate legitimate organizations or individuals to trick victims into revealing sensitive information such as passwords, credit card numbers, or personal data.
Key term
Social engineering
Social engineering is the psychological manipulation of people into divulging confidential information or performing actions that compromise security.
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official ISC2 exam blueprint
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.