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N10-009 · Question #225

An attacker follows an employee through a badge-secured door before the door closes. Which of the following types of attacks is occurring?

The correct answer is B. Tailgating. The act of an attacker following an authorized individual through a secure door before it closes is known as tailgating, a common physical security breach.

Submitted by neha2k· Mar 6, 2026Network Security

Question

An attacker follows an employee through a badge-secured door before the door closes. Which of the following types of attacks is occurring?

Options

  • AShoulder surfing
  • BTailgating
  • CPhishing
  • DOn-path

How the community answered

(17 responses)
  • A
    6% (1)
  • B
    94% (16)

Why each option

The act of an attacker following an authorized individual through a secure door before it closes is known as tailgating, a common physical security breach.

AShoulder surfing

Shoulder surfing involves directly observing someone's screen or keyboard to steal information, which is different from gaining physical access by following someone.

BTailgatingCorrect

Tailgating, also known as piggybacking, is a physical security breach where an unauthorized person gains entry to a restricted area by closely following an authorized individual who has legitimately opened a secure access point, like a badge-secured door.

CPhishing

Phishing is a social engineering attack conducted via electronic communication (e.g., email) to trick individuals into revealing sensitive information, not a method of physical entry.

DOn-path

On-path, or Man-in-the-Middle, is a type of cyberattack where an attacker intercepts and potentially alters communication between two parties, not a physical access method.

Concept tested: Physical security attacks

Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/modules/security-best-practices/6-protecting-on-premises-physical-security

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