Which of the following network attacks refers to a process in which an attacker changes his or her IP address so that he or she appears to be someone else?

• A. IP address spoofing
• B. Man-in-the-middle attack
• C. Denial of Service attack
• D. Session sniffing

Answer: (A)

Masquerading as another host by forging the source IP address is IP address spoofing. In this attack, the attacker crafts packets with a fake source IP so the destination thinks the traffic comes from that other machine. This can help hide the attacker’s true identity, evade simple IP-based controls, or enable techniques like referral or amplification attacks. It’s different from a man-in-the-middle, which aims to sit between two parties to observe or alter traffic without necessarily changing the apparent origin. It’s also not about exhausting a service (Denial of Service) or just listening to traffic (session sniffing).