Which Attack Redirects Website Users to a Different Site?

N10-009 By islever Editorial Last updated

Short answer

A DNS poisoning

Question

Which of the following attacks can cause users who are attempting to access a company website to be directed to an entirely different website?
  1. DNS poisoning Correct Answer
  2. Denial-of-service
  3. Social engineering
  4. ARP spoofing

Key Takeaways

This question tests your ability to distinguish between network-layer attacks that manipulate address resolution (DNS vs. ARP) and other non-redirecting threats; the trap is confusing ARP spoofing with DNS poisoning because both involve 'spoofing' but operate at different layers.

The correct answer is A. DNS poisoning, also known as DNS cache poisoning, which corrupts DNS records to redirect users to attacker-controlled websites. Community consensus strongly supports this answer, with 89 votes for option A.

Common mistake: The most common wrong answer is D. ARP spoofing, because it also redirects traffic, but ARP spoofing works at Layer 2 within a local network and does not affect DNS resolution for users attempting to access a public company website.

Expert Analysis

Why the Answer Is Correct

DNS poisoning (also called DNS cache poisoning) is the attack that directly causes users trying to access a legitimate company website to be sent to a different, often malicious website. It works by corrupting the DNS server's cache so that hostnames resolve to incorrect IP addresses under the attacker's control. As community comment [1] explains, the poisoned server hands out an attacker-controlled IP address when a client requests the legitimate site.

Why the Other Options Are Wrong

B. Denial-of-service (DoS) prevents access to a website but does not redirect users to a different site; it makes the site unavailable. C. Social engineering involves manipulating people into divulging credentials or performing actions, not automatically redirecting traffic. D. ARP spoofing, while it can facilitate traffic interception or man-in-the-middle attacks, operates on the local network and does not change DNS resolution for users reaching a company website by domain name. Community comment [4] notes that "DNS is generally what the user is clicking on in good faith," reinforcing why DNS is the correct layer.

Community Comment Notes

Comments [2] and [3] directly affirm that DNS poisoning is the correct answer because it corrupts DNS records to redirect users. Comment [5] initially lists 'D' but then explicitly states 'DNS Poisoning' in the explanation, indicating a formatting mistake rather than a different answer. The near-unanimous vote (89 for A) confirms DNS poisoning as the expected response on the N10-009 exam.

Official Reference

These links open the official vendor documentation in a new tab.

Exam Strategy

When answering attack-type questions, first identify the attack's objective (redirect, disrupt, steal, or intercept) and then map it to the correct layer or protocol. For redirecting website users, think about the DNS resolution process, not local address resolution, and remember that ARP spoofing is limited to the same subnet.

Community Votes

A
100%

100% of anonymous learners picked answer A. Votes are pick records left by other test-takers — they are not the verified answer.

Discussion 7 contributions

Compiled from public community threads and reader submissions, lightly edited for clarity. Handles and vote tallies are shown as recorded, and comments reflect the views of individual contributors.

From public community threads 7

  1. HeatSquad77 👍 2 Answered A
    A. DNS cache poisoning Also known as DNS poisoning, an attack that adds or changes information in a DNS server’s cache to point hostnames to incorrect IP addresses, under the attacker’s control. When a client requests an IP address from this DNS server for a Web site, the poisoned server hands out an IP address of an attacker machine, not the legitimate site. When the client subsequently visits the attacker site, they become vulnerable to a number of threats including malware.
  2. chupapi_001 👍 2
    The correct answer is A. DNS poisoning DNS poisoning is a type of cyber attack that specifically causes users to be redirected to malicious websites when they attempt to access legitimate ones.
  3. ba10f26 👍 1 Answered A
    The correct answer is: A. DNS poisoning. DNS poisoning (or DNS spoofing) involves corrupting the DNS cache or records to redirect users from a legitimate website to a fraudulent or malicious website. This type of attack can deceive users and potentially capture sensitive information.
  4. Intel_Geek 👍 1 Answered D
    DNS poisoning redirects your URL to a malicious website when trying to access a regular one,
  5. Dennizje 👍 1 Answered A
    It is DNS poisoning, the DNS is generally what the user is clicking on in good faith.
Show 2 more comments
  1. Intel_Geek 👍 3 Answered A
    a
  2. BobbyCruz111 👍 1 Answered A
    DNS Poisoning

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