What is a man-in-the-middle attack?

Question

Options

• AAn attack that targets a specific user or organization
• BAn attack that aims to steal sensitive information
• CAn attack that intercepts communications between two parties to steal information
• DAn attack that floods a network or server with traffic to make it unavailable

• A
  4% (2)
• B
  2% (1)
• C
  87% (48)
• D
  7% (4)

Explanation

Option C is correct because a man-in-the-middle (MITM) attack occurs when an attacker secretly positions themselves between two communicating parties - intercepting, and potentially altering, the data being exchanged without either party knowing.

• A is wrong - targeting a specific person or org describes a spear phishing or targeted attack, not MITM specifically.
• B is wrong - while MITM can result in stolen information, "aims to steal sensitive information" is too broad and describes many attack types (phishing, data breaches, etc.).
• D is wrong - flooding a network with traffic to make it unavailable is a Denial of Service (DoS) attack, a completely different category.

Memory tip: Think of the name literally - an attacker stands "in the middle" of a conversation between Alice and Bob, secretly reading (and possibly changing) every message. A classic real-world analogy is a rogue Wi-Fi hotspot that relays your traffic while secretly reading it.

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