While mapping an internal network you run an Nmap SYN scan with OS fingerprinting against three previously undocumented IP addresses. Nmap lists them respectively as Windows Server 2008, Cisco IOS 12.4, and Solaris 10, yet packet details show the same fixed TTL value of 64, zeroed IP ID fields, and identical, predictable TCP ISN increments for every host. What is the most plausible reason for these contradictory observations?
The systems are load-balanced nodes sitting behind a reverse proxy that normalizes packets.
TCP sequence randomization has been disabled on the hosts, causing uniform packet signatures.
All three hosts are virtual machines on the same hypervisor using the default network driver.
They are low-interaction honeypots that spoof service banners to impersonate several operating systems.
Low-interaction honeypot frameworks such as Honeyd reply to probes with fabricated banners so each virtual host appears to run a different operating system. Because all replies are generated by the same lightweight daemon, low-level packet fields (TTL, IP ID, TCP ISN, window size, timestamp behavior) are often identical or highly predictable across the supposed "hosts." Seasoned attackers look for this uniformity; real machines running different OSs would normally exhibit distinct default TTLs and independent IP ID and ISN generation routines. Virtual machines behind a hypervisor or load balancer would not force them to share these exact packet signatures, and disabling TCP sequence randomization affects only the host in question, not three disparate systems with differing claimed OSs. Therefore, the most likely explanation is that the three addresses are low-interaction honeypots emulating multiple systems.
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