Which type of attack involves the installation of malicious code on personal computers or servers that redirects Internet traffic from a legitimate Web site to an identical-looking but malicious impos

Question

Options

• APharming
• BSpoofing
• CPhishing
• DReplay

• A
  87% (34)
• B
  3% (1)
• C
  3% (1)
• D
  8% (3)

Explanation

Pharming is correct because it specifically describes malicious code (often installed via DNS poisoning or host file modification) that silently redirects users from legitimate URLs to fraudulent lookalike sites - the user types the right address but lands on the wrong server.

Spoofing (B) is broader - it refers to impersonating any identity (IP address, email sender, MAC address) without necessarily redirecting traffic via malicious code installation. Phishing (C) tricks users into clicking a malicious link themselves, relying on deception rather than silent code-based redirection. Replay (D) is a network attack where valid data transmissions are fraudulently reused, unrelated to website impersonation.

Memory tip: Think "pharming = farm" - just as a farmer cultivates land to harvest victims en masse, pharming harvests many users automatically by poisoning the routing infrastructure, requiring no individual deception per target (unlike phishing, which baits one hook at a time).

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