Which of the following does not belong to the single packet attack type?

Question

Options

• ASpecial message attack
• BMalformed message attack
• CDoS attack
• DScanning and snooping attacks

• A
  16% (7)
• B
  7% (3)
• C
  72% (31)
• D
  5% (2)

Explanation

DoS attacks (C) do not belong to the single packet attack category because they rely on overwhelming a target with a flood of packets over time - their destructive effect depends on volume and sustained traffic, not a single crafted packet.

Why the distractors are wrong:

• A (Special message attacks) - These exploit vulnerabilities using one specially crafted packet (e.g., Ping of Death), so they are quintessential single packet attacks.
• B (Malformed message attacks) - These send a single intentionally broken packet (e.g., mismatched header fields) to crash or exploit a service, making them single packet attacks.
• D (Scanning and snooping attacks) - A single probe packet (e.g., one SYN or ICMP packet) can reveal host/port information, so these also qualify as single packet attacks.

Memory tip: Think "single packet = single strike." Special messages strike with craft, malformed messages strike with corruption, and scanning strikes with a probe - but DoS needs a barrage, not one strike, so it breaks the pattern.

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