Which of the following is a type of Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack that overwhelms a network with a high volume of Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) packets?

Correct option is C

The Smurf Attack is a type of Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack that exploits the Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP). It works by sending a large number of ICMP Echo Request (ping) packets to the broadcast address of a network, with the source address spoofed as the victim's IP address. This overwhelms the victim's network with responses, leading to disruption or denial of service.
Important Key Points:
1. Smurf Attack Mechanism: It relies on the misuse of broadcast networks and ICMP packets, making it effective in overwhelming target systems.
2. ICMP Echo Requests: These packets are used to generate excessive network traffic, consuming bandwidth and causing service degradation.
3. Mitigation: Smurf attacks can be prevented by disabling IP-directed broadcasts on routers and configuring firewalls to block unnecessary ICMP traffic.
Knowledge Booster:
· SYN Flood: A DDoS attack that exploits the TCP handshake process by sending numerous SYN requests without completing the handshake, consuming server resources.
· Ping of Death: A DDoS attack that sends oversized ICMP packets, causing target systems to crash.
· DNS Amplification: A reflection-based DDoS attack that leverages open DNS resolvers to amplify traffic towards the victim.
· UDP Flood: A DDoS attack where large volumes of User Datagram Protocol (UDP) packets are sent to overwhelm a target system.