Network Security Basics: What Actually Happens During a Handshake

This is a sample technical post about network security.

The TCP Three-Way Handshake

When your browser connects to a website, the first thing that happens is a TCP handshake.

Client → Server: SYN
Server → Client: SYN-ACK
Client → Server: ACK

Why It Matters

Understanding this process is fundamental to understanding how attacks like SYN floods work.

# Example: checking open connections
netstat -an | grep ESTABLISHED