Ethical Hacking Essentials Practice Test 2026 – The Complete Guide to Exam Success!

The method that alters the content and format of data packets to disrupt successful communication is a fragmentation attack. This technique involves manipulating packet fragmentation and as a result, might change how data is interpreted by the receiving system, causing it to either process the data incorrectly or not at all. By sending fragmented packets that are carefully constructed, an attacker can exploit the way that protocols like IP handle packet reassembly, potentially leading to memory overflows or crashes.

This method can be particularly effective against certain systems or applications that do not properly handle fragmented incoming data, making it a useful tool for attackers looking to disrupt communication or exploit vulnerabilities in network protocols. Understanding fragmentation attacks is crucial for ethical hackers, as it helps in identifying and mitigating potential weaknesses in network security. The other answer choices relate to denial of service or other types of network attacks, but they do not specifically focus on altering data packets in the same manner as fragmentation attacks do.