Certified Ethical Hacker CEHv10 Practice Test 2025 – Complete Exam Prep

Stealth scans are sophisticated methods utilized to evade detection by security systems, particularly firewalls. The technique of resetting the TCP connection before the handshake is integral to stealth scanning. This approach typically involves sending a SYN packet to initiate a connection, but rather than completing the handshake process, the attacker sends a RST (Reset) packet. This RST packet effectively aborts the connection attempt before it can be logged or fully established, allowing the attacker to gather information about open ports without alerting the firewall or intrusion detection systems.

The other methods mentioned can have specific uses in network communication but do not specifically pertain to stealth scanning techniques in the same direct manner. Increasing the number of packets sent could create more traffic and draw attention rather than avoiding detection. Utilizing encryption does not inherently make a scan stealthy, as encrypted packets can still be detected by firewalls if they are monitoring for patterns. Fragmenting packets can obscure data but may not adhere directly to the stealth scanning purpose as effectively as resetting the connection. Thus, the resetting of a TCP connection prior to the handshake is a critical method for avoiding detection during reconnaissance stages in a cybersecurity context.