ISC2 CC Network Security Practice Question
An employee receives an email that appears to be from the IT department, asking them to click a link and reset their password due to a security breach. The link leads to a website that looks identical to the company's login page. Which type of attack is this?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is overclassifying the attack as spear phishing or whaling when the scenario lacks evidence of targeting or executive involvement.
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
The attack uses email to impersonate the IT department and lure the employee to a fake login page, which is the definition of phishing. While spear phishing and whaling are subsets, the scenario does not indicate a targeted or executive-focused attack, and vishing involves voice, not email.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Vishing
Why it's wrong here
Vishing is voice phishing, typically conducted over the phone or voicemail. The scenario describes an email-based attack, not a phone call. Thus, vishing is not applicable. The medium of the attack is email, which aligns with phishing, not vishing.
- ✗
Whaling
Why it's wrong here
Whaling is a type of phishing specifically targeting high-profile executives like CEOs or CFOs. The scenario involves a general employee, not an executive. Therefore, whaling is not the correct classification. The attack is not distinguished by the target's seniority.
- ✓
Phishing
Why this is correct
Phishing is a social engineering attack where an attacker sends fraudulent messages, often via email, to trick recipients into revealing sensitive information or clicking malicious links. In this scenario, the email impersonates the IT department and directs the employee to a fake login page, which is a classic phishing attempt.
- ✗
Spear phishing
Why it's wrong here
Spear phishing is a targeted form of phishing aimed at specific individuals or organizations. While this email could be spear phishing if it were tailored to the employee, the scenario does not provide evidence of targeting beyond a generic IT department message. Phishing is the broader, more accurate category for this generic attempt.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Key term
Spear phishing
Spear phishing is a targeted cyberattack in which a criminal sends a fraudulent email that appears to come from a trusted source, aiming to trick a specific person or organization into revealing sensitive data or installing malware.
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.
About these practice questions
Courseiva writes every CC question from scratch — 989 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 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.