GPEN · Question #377
Which of the following techniques are NOT used to perform active OS fingerprinting? Each correct answer represents a complete solution. Choose all that apply.
The correct answer is A. Analyzing email headers B. Sniffing and analyzing packets. Active OS fingerprinting requires sending crafted probes to a target and analyzing responses; techniques that only observe existing traffic or metadata are passive, not active.
Question
Which of the following techniques are NOT used to perform active OS fingerprinting? Each correct answer represents a complete solution. Choose all that apply.
Options
- AAnalyzing email headers
- BSniffing and analyzing packets
- CICMP error message quoting
- DSending FIN packets to open ports on the remote system
How the community answered
(33 responses)- A79% (26)
- C6% (2)
- D15% (5)
Why each option
Active OS fingerprinting requires sending crafted probes to a target and analyzing responses; techniques that only observe existing traffic or metadata are passive, not active.
Analyzing email headers is a passive reconnaissance technique that extracts OS or mail-server information from existing message metadata without sending any probe to the target system.
Sniffing and analyzing packets is also a passive technique - it captures traffic already on the network rather than actively injecting probes to elicit OS-specific responses.
ICMP error message quoting IS an active fingerprinting technique because it sends packets designed to trigger ICMP errors and then analyzes how the target OS quotes back the original message, which varies by implementation.
Sending FIN packets to open ports IS an active fingerprinting technique that exploits OS-specific differences in TCP/IP stack behavior, such as whether the target responds with RST or silently drops the packet.
Concept tested: Active vs. passive OS fingerprinting techniques
Source: https://nmap.org/book/osdetect-methods.html
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