Web Server Attack: Penetration Testing and Session Manipulation

D.

The BEST description of the attack described in the question is "Privilege escalation."

Privilege escalation is a type of attack where an attacker exploits a vulnerability in a system or application to gain access to resources or levels of access beyond what they are authorized for. In this case, the penetration testing team has used a specifically crafted payload to gain full read/write access to the file system and the admin console of the web server, which means they have escalated their privileges beyond what a normal user or daemon would have.

Domain hijacking involves taking control of a domain name, typically for the purpose of redirecting traffic or stealing sensitive information. Injection involves inserting malicious code or data into a system or application, often to exploit a vulnerability or gain access to sensitive information. Buffer overflow involves exploiting a vulnerability in a program or system by overflowing a buffer or memory space with too much data, often leading to a crash or other unintended behavior.

In summary, the attack described in the question involves gaining unauthorized access to a system or application by exploiting a vulnerability, which is characteristic of privilege escalation.