CertNexus Certified Cyber Secure Coder (CSC) — Question 57

Which of the following is an automated password cracking technique that uses a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, 0-9 numbers, and special characters?

Answer options

• A. Dictionary attack
• B. Password guessing
• C. Brute force attack
• D. Rainbow tables

Correct answer: C

Explanation

The correct answer is C, as a brute force attack systematically tries all possible combinations of characters until the password is found. Options A and B are incorrect because a dictionary attack relies on a predefined list of words, and password guessing does not utilize automation or systematic character combinations. Option D, rainbow tables, involves precomputed hash values rather than generating combinations in real-time.