Computer Systems Analyst Mock Interview
Master 25 Computer Systems Analyst interview questions covering system design, requirements analysis, and technical problem-solving.
Question 17 of 25
What is a spoofed packet, and how can it impact an organization's network?
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William Swansen has worked in the employment assistance realm since 2007. He is an author, job search strategist, and career advisor who helps individuals worldwide and in various professions to find their ideal careers.
This is a technical question asking you to define a specific term and describe how it is used in your role as a computer systems analyst. During the interview, the majority of your questions will be technical or operational. Both types of questions help the interviewer understand your qualifications and your experience doing this job. Make sure you keep your answers short and to the point. This will encourage the interviewer to ask a follow-up question if they want to explore the topic in more detail.
William Swansen has worked in the employment assistance realm since 2007. He is an author, job search strategist, and career advisor who helps individuals worldwide and in various professions to find their ideal careers.
"A spoofed packet is an IP packet that originates from a counterfeit IP address. Although it behaves like a legitimate and authentic packet, it is malicious. Hackers use spoofed packets to defeat a network's security and launch threats such as denial of service attacks. Computer systems analyst and network operators can detect these using various tools available in the open market."
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Anonymous Answer
Basically, a malicious actor sends a packet from his/her computer that has been manipulated to seem like it comes from another computer. This can be exploited in various ways one of them is an Amplified DDOS. In this attack the attacker sends a request to a DNS server pretending to be the victim's machine, when this is done at scale the attacker can amplify the bandwidth directed to the victim by a factor 20x,50x, or more. Also spoofed packages are used in some Man In The Middle Attacks.
Amanda's Feedback
This is a good start! You can improve your definition by explaining that packet spoofing is the creation of Internet Protocol (IP) packets with a source IP address designed to conceal the identity of the sender or impersonating another computing system. Then, go on to explain that a successful spoofing attack can have serious consequences for an organization such as stealing personal or company data, harvesting credentials to be used in later attacks, spreading malware, bypassing access controls, or gaining unauthorized network access. Expanding your answer in this way shows the interviewer that you not only know what it is, but how it can harm the organization.
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