An attacker sends a series of probes to a web server or application in
						order to elicit version-dependent and type-dependent behavior that assists
						in identifying the target. An attacker could learn information such as
						software versions, error pages, response headers, variations in
						implementations of the HTTP protocol, directory structures, and other
						similar information about the targeted service. This information can then be
						used by an attacker to formulate a targeted attack plan. While web service
						fingerprinting is not intended to be damaging (although certain activities,
						such as network scans, can sometimes cause disruptions to vulnerable
						applications inadvertently) it may often pave the way for more damaging
						attacks.