What term lists the open ports and services on a target computer by sending a sequence of messages?

What term lists the open ports and services on a target computer by sending a sequence of messages?

• A. Network Scanning
• B. Vulnerability Scanning
• C. Port Scanning
• D. SYN

Answer: (C)

Port scanning is the process of listing open ports and the services running on a target by sending a sequence of messages to different ports and observing the responses. By probing each port, you determine which ones are open (responding positively) and what service banner or protocol it indicates, giving you a map of the target’s network surface. Open ports represent potential entry points, so identifying them is a foundational reconnaissance step before deeper testing like version grabbing or vulnerability assessment. While a SYN scan is a common technique used within port scanning to probe ports stealthily, the overall activity described—enumerating open ports and services by sending probes—is port scanning. Network scanning is broader (including host discovery and mapping), and vulnerability scanning looks for known weaknesses rather than just enumerating open ports.

Port scanning is the process of listing open ports and the services running on a target by sending a sequence of messages to different ports and observing the responses. By probing each port, you determine which ones are open (responding positively) and what service banner or protocol it indicates, giving you a map of the target’s network surface. Open ports represent potential entry points, so identifying them is a foundational reconnaissance step before deeper testing like version grabbing or vulnerability assessment. While a SYN scan is a common technique used within port scanning to probe ports stealthily, the overall activity described—enumerating open ports and services by sending probes—is port scanning. Network scanning is broader (including host discovery and mapping), and vulnerability scanning looks for known weaknesses rather than just enumerating open ports.