ISC2 CC Network Security Practice Question
An organization experiences intermittent network outages. The security team notices that the ARP cache on several switches has entries pointing to an unknown MAC address for the default gateway. Which attack is most likely occurring?
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 spoofing
ARP spoofing (or ARP poisoning) involves sending forged ARP messages to associate the attacker's MAC with the IP of the default gateway, causing traffic to be misrouted. This can lead to man-in-the-middle attacks or denial of service.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
ARP spoofing
Why this is correct
ARP spoofing falsifies IP-to-MAC mappings.
- ✗
DNS poisoning
Why it's wrong here
DNS poisoning corrupts DNS resolver cache.
- ✗
IP spoofing
Why it's wrong here
IP spoofing forges source IP address, not MAC mapping.
- ✗
MAC flooding
Why it's wrong here
MAC flooding overwhelms switch MAC table, not ARP cache.
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 |
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Introduction to Security Principles
Key term
Organization
An Organization is a top-level container in Google Cloud that represents your company or entities and serves as the root node for all your cloud resources, policies, and access control.
Key term
ARP poisoning
ARP poisoning is a network attack where an attacker sends fake Address Resolution Protocol messages to link their MAC address with a legitimate IP address, enabling them to intercept, modify, or stop data on a local network.
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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.