What type of attack involves intercepting and monitoring network traffic and data flow on the target network and does not tamper with the data?

• A. Active attacks
• B. Passive attacks
• C. Insider Attack
• D. Distribution Attacks

Answer: (B)

The concept tested here is the difference between passive and active attacks in how they handle data on the network. Intercepting and monitoring network traffic and data flow without altering the data is a passive attack. It involves eavesdropping, capturing packets, and performing traffic analysis to learn what’s happening on the network, all while leaving the content unchanged. Because nothing is tampered with, this type of attack can be harder to detect—the beacon is the data being observed, not altered.

In contrast, active attacks modify, inject, or disrupt data and communications, such as tampering with packets, impersonating devices, or dropping traffic. That’s not what’s happening in this scenario, which is why the passive attacks label fits best. The other options don’t describe simply listening in on traffic: an insider attack involves a trusted internal actor misusing access, and distribution attacks refer to delivering malicious payloads through supply chains or software distributions, not just monitoring traffic.