Systems Security Certified Practitioner – SSCP – Question0917

Which type of attack involves hijacking a session between a host and a target by predicting the target's choice of an initial TCP sequence number?

A.
IP spoofing attack
B. SYN flood attack
C. TCP sequence number attack
D. Smurf attack

Correct Answer: C

Explanation:

A TCP sequence number attack exploits the communication session which was established between the target and the trusted host that initiated the session. It involves hijacking the session between the host and the target by predicting the target’s choice of an initial TCP sequence number. An IP spoofing attack is used to convince a system that it is communication with a known entity that gives an intruder access. It involves modifying the source address of a packet for a trusted source’s address. A SYN attack is when an attacker floods a system with connection requests but does not respond when the target system replies to those requests. A smurf attack occurs when an attacker sends a spoofed (IP spoofing) PING (ICMP ECHO) packet to the broadcast address of a large network (the bounce site). The modified packet containing the address of the target system, all devices on its local network respond with a ICMP REPLY to the target system, which is then saturated with those replies. Source: KRUTZ, Ronald L. & VINES, Russel D., The CISSP Prep Guide: Mastering the Ten Domains of Computer Security, John Wiley & Sons, 2001, Chapter 3: Telecommunications and Network Security (page 77).