What is a potential effect of a buffer overflow attack?

A buffer overflow attack occurs when a program writes more data to a buffer than it is allocated, causing data to spill over into adjacent memory locations. This can lead to several detrimental effects on the system. One significant potential effect is a system crash. When the overflow occurs, it can overwrite critical control data structures or even parts of the program's code, leading to unstable behavior, crashes, or execution of arbitrary code.

In many cases, the overwritten data can disrupt the normal functioning of the operating system or application, triggering errors or causing the system to become unresponsive. This can result not only in the immediate crash of the affected application but also bring down the entire system in severe cases, especially if it involves crucial components of the operating system. Thus, the potential for a system crash is a direct and serious consequence of a buffer overflow attack.

The other options, such as data encryption, increased network traffic, and phishing attacks, do not directly relate to the specific mechanics or outcomes of buffer overflow vulnerabilities, indicating that they are less relevant in this context.