Ethical Hacking Essentials Practice Test

What type of attack involves following an authorized person into a secured area without consent?

1. Tailgating

2. Pretexting

3. Phishing

4. Dumpster diving

The correct answer is: Tailgating

Tailgating refers to the practice of gaining unauthorized access to a secured area by closely following an authorized individual without their knowledge or consent. This method exploits the trust that individuals place in one another and typically occurs in scenarios such as office buildings or secured facilities where identification may be required for entry. In tailgating, the attacker relies on the authorized person's access rights, essentially using them as a means to bypass security measures. This type of social engineering attack highlights the importance of security protocols and the need for individuals to remain vigilant, ensuring they do not allow others to "tailgate" behind them into restricted areas. The other options listed represent different types of malicious activities. Pretexting involves an attacker creating a fabricated scenario to obtain confidential information from the target, which does not involve unauthorized physical access. Phishing is a tactic used to lure victims into revealing personal information through deceptive emails or communications, again not involving physical entry. Dumpster diving refers to searching through physical waste for sensitive information that has been discarded, which does not involve direct interaction or intrusion into a secured space. Each of these methods operates on different principles of deception but does not specifically describe the act of following someone into a secured area as tailgating does.