CompTIA CS0-002 CompTIA CySA+ Certification Exam (CS0-002) Exam Practice Test

The testing is outside the contractual scope is the most dangerous to the client environment during a vulnerability assessment penetration test. A contractual scope defines the boundaries and limitations of the testing, such as the target systems, networks, applications, methods, techniques, tools, time frame, and deliverables. Testing outside the contractual scope can violate the agreement between the tester and the client and cause legal or ethical issues. Testing outside the contractual scope can also damage or disrupt the client environment by affecting systems, networks, applications, or data that are not authorized or intended for testing. Testing outside the contractual scope can also compromise the validity and reliability of the test results and recommendations. There is a longer period of time to assess the environment (A) is not necessarily dangerous to the client environment during a vulnerability assessment penetration test. A longer period of time can allow for more thorough and comprehensive testing and analysis of the vulnerabilities and risks in the client environment. However, a longer period of time can also increase the exposure and likelihood of detection by attackers or defenders. There is a shorter period of time to assess the environment © is also not necessarily dangerous to the client environment during a vulnerability assessment penetration test. A shorter period of time can reduce the exposure and likelihood of detection by attackers or defenders. However, a shorter period of time can also limit the depth and breadth of testing and analysis of the vulnerabilities and risks in the client environment. No status reports are included with the assessment (D) is not dangerous to the client environment during a vulnerability assessment penetration test. Status reports are documents that provide updates on the progress and findings of the testing to the client or stakeholders. Status reports can help to communicate effectively and transparently with the client or stakeholders and address any issues or concerns that may arise during the testing. However, status reports do not directly affect the client environment or its security.

User access logging (UAL) is a feature on Windows Server operating systems that records the details of remote access and management activities performed by users on the server. UAL can provide information such as the user name, the source IP address, the destination host name, the protocol used, and the time and duration of the connection1. Enabling user access logging on the VPN server can help the security analyst to obtain the best information to identify and investigate the inbound connection originating from an unknown IP address.

The correct answer is C. Machine learning. Machine learning is a branch of artificial intelligence that uses advanced mathematical techniques, such as statistics, algorithms, and linear algebra, to analyze large amounts of data and find patterns and correlations in events and activities. Machine learning can help to automate tasks, improve decision making, and enhance security by detecting anomalies, threats, or trends1.

A. Data visualization is not correct. Data visualization is the process of presenting data in a graphical or pictorial format, such as charts, graphs, maps, or dashboards. Data visualization can help to communicate information, insights, or trends more effectively and intuitively than using text or numbers alone2.

B. SOAR is not correct. SOAR stands for Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response, and it is a solution that combines various tools and processes to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of security operations. SOAR can help to automate tasks, integrate systems, coordinate actions, and respond to incidents faster and more consistently3.

D. SCAP is not correct. SCAP stands for Security Content Automation Protocol, and it is a set of standards and specifications that enable the automated assessment, measurement, and reporting of the security posture of systems and networks. SCAP can help to ensure compliance, identify vulnerabilities, and remediate issues.

1: What Is Machine Learning? 2: What Is Data Visualization? 3: What Is Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response (SOAR)? : [What Is Security Content Automation Protocol (SCAP)?]

Blocking the download of the file via the web proxy is the best change to make to the security tools to remedy the issue. A web proxy is a server that acts as an intermediary between a client and a web server, filtering or modifying requests and responses according to predefined rules1. Blocking the download of the file via the web proxy can prevent developers from accessing and executing the offending file that is bundled with adware. This can reduce the risk of infection or compromise of the developer workstations and improve their performance and security. Blacklisting the hash in the next-generation antivirus system (A) is not the best change to make to the security tools to remedy the issue. Blacklisting is a technique that involves blocking or denying access to known malicious or unwanted entities based on their identifiers, such as hashes, IP addresses, domains, etc2. Blacklisting the hash in the next-generation antivirus system can prevent developers from executing the offending file that is bundled with adware, but it does not prevent them from downloading it. This can still consume network bandwidth and disk space and expose developers to potential threats. Manually deleting the file from each of the workstations (B) is not the best change to make to the security tools to remedy the issue. Manually deleting the file from each of the workstations can remove the offending file that is bundled with adware, but it does not prevent developers from downloading it again. This can be a time-consuming and inefficient process that requires human intervention and coordination. Removing administrative rights from all developer workstations © is not the best change to make to the security tools to remedy the issue. Removing administrative rights from all developer workstations can limit developers’ ability to install or execute unauthorized or malicious applications, such as adware, but it does not prevent them from downloading them. This can also affect developers’ productivity and functionality by restricting their access to legitimate applications or settings.

References: 1: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/24771/technical-controls  2: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/25888/security-development-lifecycle-sdl

If an analyst observes evidence of an attack but cannot find an exploit that adequately explains the observations, it may indicate the presence of a zero-day vulnerability, which is an unknown vulnerability that attackers can exploit to gain unauthorized access to systems. In such cases, traditional security tools may not be able to detect or prevent the attack. Therefore, the analyst should investigate further to identify and mitigate the vulnerability to prevent further exploitation.

A cybersecurity analyst is researching operational data to develop a script that will detect the presence of a threat on corporate assets. The most useful information to produce this script is MITRE ATT&CK reports. MITRE ATT&CK is a knowledge base of adversary tactics and techniques based on real-world observations. MITRE ATT&CK reports provide detailed information on how different threat actors operate, what tools they use, what indicators they leave behind, and how to detect or mitigate their attacks. The other options are not as useful or relevant for this purpose. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 9; https://attack.mitre.org/

Volatile artifacts are data that is stored in a computer’s volatile memory while it is running, such as open network connections, running processes, encryption keys, and internet history. Volatile artifacts can provide valuable evidence for forensic investigations, especially for detecting and analyzing malware or malicious activities that do not leave traces on the hard drive. However, volatile artifacts are wiped off the system’s memory once the power is turned off, so they cannot be recovered later

The correct answer is A. Enable secure boot in the hardware and reload the operating system. Secure boot is a feature of UEFI that ensures that only trusted and authorized code can execute during the boot process. Secure boot can prevent boot malware, such as rootkits or bootkits, from compromising the system before the operating system loads1. To enable secure boot, the hardware must support UEFI and have a firmware that implements the secure boot protocol. The operating system must also support UEFI and have a digital signature that matches the keys stored in the firmware. If the operating system was installed in legacy mode or does not have a valid signature, it may not boot with secure boot enabled. Therefore, it may be necessary to reload the operating system after enabling secure boot in the hardware2.

B. Reconfigure the system’s MBR and enable NTFS is not correct. MBR stands for Master Boot Record, and it is a legacy partitioning scheme that stores information about the partitions and the boot loader on a disk. NTFS stands for New Technology File System, and it is a file system that supports features such as encryption, compression, and access control. Reconfiguring the system’s MBR and enabling NTFS would not enable secure boot UEFI features, as they are not related to UEFI or secure boot. Moreover, MBR is incompatible with UEFI, as UEFI requires a different partitioning scheme called GPT (GUID Partition Table)3.

C. Set UEFI to legacy mode and enable security features is not correct. Legacy mode is a compatibility mode that allows UEFI systems to boot using legacy BIOS methods. Legacy mode disables some of the features and benefits of UEFI, such as secure boot, faster boot time, or larger disk support. Setting UEFI to legacy mode would not enable secure boot UEFI features, but rather disable them.

D. Convert the legacy partition table to UEFI and repair the operating system is not correct. Converting the legacy partition table to UEFI means changing the partitioning scheme from MBR to GPT, which is required for UEFI systems to boot. However, this alone would not enable secure boot UEFI features, as it also depends on the firmware settings and the operating system support. Repairing the operating system may or may not fix any issues caused by converting the partition table, but it would not necessarily enable secure boot either.

1: What Is Secure Boot? 2: How to Enable Secure Boot 3: MBR vs GPT: Which One Is Better for You? : [UEFI vs Legacy BIOS – The Ultimate Comparison Guide]

"CASB solutions generally offer their own DLP policy engine, allowing you to configure DLP policies in a CASB and apply them to cloud services." https://www.mcafee.com/blogs/enterprise/cloud-security/how-a-casb-int egrates-with-an-on-premises-dlp-solution/

CASB stands for Cloud Access Security Broker, which is a solution that monitors and controls the access and usage of cloud services by an organization’s users. DLP stands for Data Loss Prevention, which is a solution that prevents unauthorized disclosure or leakage of sensitive data. Utilizing the CASB to enforce DLP data-in-motion protection for financial information moving to the cloud is the best recommendation for a security analyst to mitigate the threat of financial data leakage into the cloud, because it would prevent users from uploading or transferring financial information to cloud services that are not authorized or secure. Utilizing the CASB to enforce DLP data-at-rest protection for financial information that is stored on premises, not utilizing the CASB solution for this purpose but adding DLP on premises for data in motion or data at rest are other possible recommendations, but they are not as effective or relevant as utilizing the CASB to enforce DLP data-in-motion protection for financial information moving to the cloud. Reference: https://www.csoonline.com/article/3200344/what-is-a-casb-and-why-do-you-need-one.html

This line from the output most likely indicates that attackers could quickly use brute force and determine the negotiated secret session key, as it represents a weak cipher suite that uses an outdated encryption algorithm, a small key size, and no forward secrecy. A cipher suite is a combination of cryptographic algorithms and parameters that are used to establish a secure communication channel between two parties. The cipher suite in this line consists of four components: TLS_RSA_WITH_DES_CBC_SHA 56.

• TLS stands for Transport Layer Security, and it is a protocol that provides security and privacy for network communications.
• RSA stands for Rivest-Shamir-Adleman, and it is an algorithm that uses public-key cryptography for key exchange and authentication.
• DES stands for Data Encryption Standard, and it is an algorithm that uses symmetric-key cryptography for data encryption.
• CBC stands for Cipher Block Chaining, and it is a mode of operation that encrypts each block of data by XORing it with the previous ciphertext block.
• SHA stands for Secure Hash Algorithm, and it is an algorithm that produces a fixed-length hash value from any input data.
• 56 stands for the key size in bits, which indicates how strong or secure the encryption is.

The cipher suite in this line is weak because:

• DES is an outdated encryption algorithm that has been broken by brute force attacks, as it has a small key size of 56 bits, which can be easily guessed by modern computers.
• RSA does not provide forward secrecy, which means that if the RSA private key is compromised, all past and future communications encrypted with that key can be decrypted by an attacker.
• SHA is also an outdated hash algorithm that has been replaced by newer versions such as SHA-2 or SHA-3, as it has some vulnerabilities and weaknesses.

Deidentifying a data subject means removing or obscuring any data that can be used to identify, locate, or contact an individual, such as names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, social security numbers, etc. Deidentifying a data subject throughout the organization’s applications can help comply with the new regulation that requires only retaining the minimum amount of data on a person to perform the organization’s necessary activities.

A breach notification is a communication to affected individuals or entities that informs them of a security incident involving their personal or sensitive information. A breach notification may include details such as what information was compromised, when and how the incident occurred, what actions are being taken to mitigate the impact, and what steps the recipients should take to protect themselves3 A breach notification may be required by law or regulation, depending on the type and location of the information involved and the jurisdiction of the affected parties. Different countries or regions may have different breach notification requirements, such as who must be notified, when, how, and what information must be disclosed4 Therefore, the best role to determine the breach notification requirements for a company that experienced a breach of sensitive information affecting customers across multiple geographical regions is legal counsel. Legal counsel can advise the company on its legal obligations and liabilities, as well as help draft and deliver appropriate breach notifications.

RBAC (Role-Based Access Control) is a solution that would work best to assist the help desk with the onboarding and offboarding process while protecting the company’s assets. RBAC is a method of granting access to resources based on the roles of users within an organization. RBAC simplifies the management of user permissions by assigning predefined roles to users based on their job functions, rather than granting individual permissions to each user. RBAC can help automate the onboarding and offboarding process by enabling the help desk to quickly create or delete user accounts and assign or revoke access rights based on the roles of the users1. RBAC can also help protect the company’s assets by enforcing the principle of least privilege, which means that users only have access to the resources they need to perform their duties and nothing more2.

The correct answer is C. Microsoft RDP is accepting connections on TCP. Microsoft RDP stands for Microsoft Remote Desktop Protocol, and it is a protocol that allows users to remotely access and control a Windows computer or server. RDP uses TCP port 3389 by default, and this port is open on the host according to the results. This indicates that the host is allowing RDP connections from anyone on the internet, which poses a security concern. An attacker could exploit vulnerabilities in RDP or use brute force attacks to gain unauthorized access to the host and compromise its data or resources1.

A. A remote communications port is exposed is not correct. A remote communications port is a generic term for any port that allows remote access or communication with a host. There are many types of remote communications ports, such as SSH, Telnet, FTP, or RDP, and each one has its own security implications. The results do not specify which remote communications port is exposed, so this answer is too vague and inaccurate.

B. The FTP port should be using TCP only is not correct. FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol, and it is a protocol that allows users to transfer files between hosts. FTP uses TCP ports 20 and 21 by default, and these ports are closed on the host according to the results. However, FTP can also use UDP ports 20 and 21 for data transfer in some cases, such as when using passive mode or extended passive mode2. Therefore, it is not true that FTP should be using TCP only, and this answer does not represent a security concern.

D. The company’s DNS server is exposed to everyone is not correct. DNS stands for Domain Name System, and it is a system that translates domain names into IP addresses. DNS uses UDP port 53 by default, and this port is open on the host according to the results. This indicates that the host is providing DNS services to anyone on the internet, which may or may not be a security concern depending on the configuration and purpose of the host. For example, if the host is a public DNS server that is intended to serve DNS queries from anyone, then this answer does not represent a security concern. However, if the host is a private DNS server that is meant to serve DNS queries only from authorized users or devices, then this answer could represent a security concern.

1: What Is Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP)? 2: FTP - File Transfer Protocol : [What Is Domain Name System (DNS)?]

The best recommendation based on the Prowler report is to delete Cloud Dev access key 1. This is because the report shows that this access key has not been used for more than 90 days, which violates the AWS security best practice of rotating access keys every 90 days or less. Deleting unused or inactive access keys can reduce the risk of unauthorized access or compromise of AWS resources.

The Diamond Model of Intrusion Analysis is a framework for analyzing and understanding malicious activity on a system or network. It defines the basic atomic element of any intrusion activity as the event, which consists of four core features: adversary, infrastructure, capability, and victim. These features are connected by edges that represent their underlying relationships and arranged in the shape of a diamond1 The infrastructure feature refers to the physical or logical communication structures that are used by the adversary to deliver a capability or interact with a victim. Examples of infrastructure elements are IP addresses, domain names, email addresses, servers, routers, etc. The domain, IP address, email address, and software version that the analyst extracted from the artifacts are all examples of infrastructure elements that can be used to identify or track the adversary’s activity.

Understanding assets and categories of assets is most important when developing a threat hunting program. Assets are anything that have value to an organization, such as data, systems, networks, applications, devices, people, processes, or reputation. Categories of assets are groups of assets that share common characteristics or attributes, such as type, function, location, owner, or criticality. Understanding assets and categories of assets can help to identify and prioritize the potential targets and impact of threats in an organization. Understanding assets and categories of assets can also help to determine and apply appropriate security controls and measures for each asset or category. Understanding assets and categories of assets can also help to collect and analyze relevant data and indicators for each asset or category during threat hunting activities. Understanding penetration testing techniques (A) is not most important when developing a threat hunting program. Penetration testing techniques are methods or tools that are used to simulate attacks on a system or network to evaluate its security posture and identify vulnerabilities or weaknesses. Penetration testing techniques can help to validate and improve the security of an organization, but they are not directly related to threat hunting activities. Penetration testing techniques are reactive rather than proactive approaches to security. Understanding how to build correlation rules within a SIEM (B) is also not most important when developing a threat hunting program. Correlation rules are logic statements that define relationships or patterns between different events or data points in a system or network. A SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) is a software solution that collects, analyzes, and correlates data from various sources in an organization to provide security monitoring and alerting capabilities1. Correlation rules can help to detect and respond to known threats in an organization, but they are not sufficient for threat hunting activities. Correlation rules are based on predefined criteria rather than hypotheses or assumptions about unknown threats. Understanding security software technologies © is also not most important when developing a threat hunting program. Security software technologies are applications or programs that provide security functions or features for an organization, such as antivirus software, firewalls, encryption software, VPNs (Virtual Private Networks), etc2. Security software technologies can help to protect an organization from various threats, but they are not essential for threat hunting activities. Security software technologies are based on signatures or heuristics rather than indicators of compromise or behavioral analysis.

References: 1: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/24771/technical-controls  2: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/25888/security-development-lifecycle-sdl

Three common types of file carving methods are as follows: Header- and footer-based carving, which focuses on headers like those found in JPEG files. For example, JPEGs can be found by looking for \xFF\xD8 in the header and \xFF\xD9 in the footer. Content-based carving techniques look for information about the content of a file such as character counts and text recognition. File structure-based carving techniques that use information about the structure of files.

File carving is a technique for recovering files from raw data bytes by scanning and rebuilding them based on their file headers and footers. File headers and footers are sequences of bytes that indicate the beginning and end of a file format, such as JPEG, PDF, ZIP, etc. File carving can be used to reconstruct files that are deleted, corrupted, fragmented, or encrypted by bypassing the file system structure and looking for recognizable patterns in the data3 The analyst used file carving to reconstruct files from a hard disk by scanning the raw data bytes and rebuilding them based on their file headers and footers.

Requiring the internet portal to be accessible from only the corporate SSO internet endpoint and requiring a smart card and PIN. This option provides the best MFA requirement because it uses two factors of authentication: something you have (smart card) and something you know (PIN). It also restricts access to the portal from a trusted source (corporate SSO internet endpoint).

Incident management is a process that aims to handle a control failure that leads to a breach by restoring normal operations as quickly as possible and minimizing the impact and damage of the incident. Incident management involves activities such as identifying, analyzing, containing, eradicating, recovering, and learning from security incidents. Risk assessment, root cause analysis, and vulnerability management are other processes related to security management, but they are not designed to handle a control failure that leads to a breach. Reference: https://www.sans.org/reading-room/whitepapers/incident/incident-handlers-handbook-33901

The tcpdump command is a network packet analyzer tool that can capture and display network traffic. The -w option specifies a file name to write the captured packets to, in a binary format that can be read by tcpdump or other tools later. This option is useful for capturing large amounts of network data that will be analyzed at a later time, as the question requires. The packet capture does not need to be in a format that is readable by humans, since it will be put into a binary file called “packetCapture”. The capture must be as efficient as possible, and the -w option minimizes the processing and output overhead of tcpdump, reducing the likelihood that packets will be missed.

The International Standards Organization, or ISO, develops standards for businesses around the world so that they may operate using a uniform set of best practices. These standards are not enforceable laws, but companies who choose to follow them stand to gain international credibility from their compliance; standards are set as guidance for best practices but are not enforceable laws

Blocking third-party applications would be the best way to mitigate future attacks on company-owned mobile devices that are used by employees to collect data from clients in the field. Third-party applications are applications that are not developed or authorized by the device manufacturer or operating system provider1. Third-party applications can pose a security risk for mobile devices, as they may contain malware, spyware, or other malicious code that can compromise the device or its data2. Blocking third-party applications can help prevent employees from installing unauthorized or untrusted applications on company-owned mobile devices and reduce the attack surface.

A cloud access security broker (CASB) is a security solution that monitors and controls the use of cloud-based services and applications. A CASB can provide data loss prevention (DLP) capabilities for sensitive data that is being stored in the cloud, such as encryption, masking, tokenization, or redaction. A CASB can also enforce policies and compliance requirements for cloud usage, such as authentication, authorization, auditing, and reporting. The other options are not appropriate solutions for controlling sensitive data in the cloud. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 14; https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/cloud-app-security/what-is-cloud-app-security

Static analysis is a method of analyzing the source code or binary code of an application without executing it. Static analysis can detect vulnerable third-party libraries before code deployment by scanning the code for references to known vulnerable libraries or versions and reporting any issues or risks12.

Impact analysis is a process of assessing the potential effects of a change on a system or service, such as performance, availability, security and compatibility. Impact analysis does not detect vulnerable third-party libraries before code deployment, but rather helps to evaluate and communicate the consequences of a change.

Dynamic analysis is a method of analyzing the behavior or performance of an application by executing it under various conditions or inputs. Dynamic analysis does not detect vulnerable third-party libraries before code deployment, but rather helps to identify any errors or defects that occur at runtime.

Protocol analysis is a method of examining the data exchanged between devices or applications over a network by capturing and interpreting the packets or messages. Protocol analysis does not detect vulnerable third-party libraries before code deployment, but rather helps to monitor and troubleshoot network communication.

• F. A reverse shell was used: A reverse shell is a technique that allows a remote attacker to execute commands on a compromised system by opening a connection from the target to the attacker’s machine. The image shows that the attacker used the netcat tool to create a reverse shell on host 192.168.1.210, which is running a web server on port 80. The attacker then used the reverse shell to access the /images folder and download a file named secret.jpg.
• C. IP address 43.23.10.201 should be blocked at the firewall: IP address 43.23.10.201 is the source of the attack, as shown by the netstat command output in the image. The attacker used this IP address to connect to host 192.168.1.210 on port 80 and exploit a vulnerability in the web server software. Blocking this IP address at the firewall would prevent further attacks from this source.

These steps are the best to confirm and respond to the incident because they preserve the state of the compromised server for further analysis and evidence collection. Pausing the virtual machine prevents any further changes or damage by the attacker, while taking a snapshot creates a copy of the virtual machine’s memory and disk contents.

nslookup is a command-line tool that can query the Domain Name System (DNS) and display information about domain names and IP addresses. The security analyst can use nslookup to find out the IP address of the malicious domain accountfix-office365.com that was used in the phishing attempt. This could help the analyst to block or trace the source of the attack. telnet, tracert, and curl are other command-line tools, but they are not as useful as nslookup for investigating a phishing attempt based on a domain name. Reference: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/administration/windows-commands/nslookup

Keeping IPS rules up to date is the best way to mitigate attacks that use advanced evasion techniques. An IPS (intrusion prevention system) is a security device that monitors network traffic and blocks or prevents malicious activity based on predefined rules or signatures. Advanced evasion techniques are cyberattacks that combine various evasion methods to bypass security detection and protection tools, such as IPS. Keeping IPS rules up to date can help to ensure that the IPS can recognize and block the latest advanced evasion techniques and prevent them from compromising the network .

Ensuring that all areas of security have the proper controls is a primary reason why organizations use frameworks. Frameworks provide an organized structure for organizations to evaluate their security posture and implement the necessary security measures for their operations. Frameworks such as NIST, COBIT, and ISO 27001 provide guidance on how to develop, implement and monitor security policies, controls, and procedures for an organization. Additionally, frameworks provide a benchmark for organizations to measure their security posture against and create a roadmap for continued improvement.

Threat intelligence is a collection and analysis of information about current and emerging threats and vulnerabilities that affect an organization’s assets and operations. Threat intelligence can help to guide risk evaluation activities by providing context, prioritization and recommendations for mitigating firmware vulnerabilities. For example, threat intelligence can help to identify which firmware vulnerabilities are actively exploited in the wild, which ones have high severity or impact, and which ones have available patches or workarounds. Implementing critical updates after proper testing can help to ensure that the firmware updates are trusted, compatible and effective. Testing can help to verify the integrity and authenticity of the firmware updates, as well as their compatibility with the existing system configuration and functionality. Testing can also help to identify any issues or conflicts that may arise from applying the firmware updates and resolve them before deployment12.

A supply chain assessment is a process that evaluates the security and integrity of the suppliers and vendors that provide hardware or software to an organization. It can help identify and mitigate the risk of tampered or counterfeit products that could compromise the organization’s security or performance. Coordinating a supply chain assessment to ensure hardware authenticity is the best course of action to mitigate the risk of motherboards that have been physically altered during the manufacturing process. Performing an assessment of the firmware, conducting a trade study, or working with IT to replace the devices are other possible actions, but they are not as effective or proactive as coordinating a supply chain assessment. Reference: https://www.nist.gov/system/files/documents/2017/04/28/sp800-161.pdf

Lessons learned is a critical stage of incident response that involves evaluating the effectiveness of the response, identifying gaps and areas for improvement, and updating the incident response plan accordingly1. Company leadership should be involved in this process to ensure they are aware of the incident, its impact, and the actions taken to prevent or mitigate future incidents. Additionally, company leadership can provide support and guidance for implementing the recommendations from the lessons learned session2.

Modbus is a communication protocol that is widely used in industrial control systems (ICS) and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems. However, Modbus was not designed to provide security and it is vulnerable to various cyberattacks. One of the main vulnerabilities of Modbus is the lack of authentication, which means that any device on the network can send or receive commands without verifying its identity or authority. This can lead to unauthorized access, data manipulation, or denial of service attacks on the ICS or SCADA system.

Some examples of attacks that exploit the lack of authentication in Modbus are:

• Detection attack: An attacker can scan the network and discover the devices and their addresses, functions, and registers by sending Modbus requests and observing the responses. This can reveal sensitive information about the system configuration and operation1.
• Command injection attack: An attacker can send malicious commands to the devices and modify their settings, values, or outputs. For example, an attacker can change the speed of a motor, open or close a valve, or turn off a switch23.
• Response injection attack: An attacker can intercept and alter the responses from the devices and deceive the master or other devices about the true state of the system. For example, an attacker can fake a normal response when there is an error or an alarm23.
• Denial of service attack: An attacker can flood the network with Modbus requests or commands and overload the devices or the communication channel. This can prevent legitimate requests or commands from being processed and disrupt the normal operation of the system14.

To mitigate these attacks, some security measures that can be applied to Modbus are:

• Encryption: Encrypting the Modbus messages can prevent eavesdropping and tampering by unauthorized parties. However, encryption can also introduce additional overhead and latency to the communication56.
• Authentication: Adding authentication mechanisms to Modbus can ensure that only authorized devices can send or receive commands. Authentication can be based on passwords, certificates, tokens, or other methods56.
• Firewall: Installing a firewall between the Modbus network and other networks can filter out unwanted traffic and block unauthorized access. A firewall can also enforce rules and policies for Modbus communication24.
• Intrusion detection system: Deploying an intrusion detection system (IDS) on the Modbus network can monitor the traffic and detect anomalous or malicious activities. An IDS can also alert the operators or trigger countermeasures when an attack is detected24.

Insecure application programming interfaces (APIs) can lead to data compromise when using a PaaS solution. APIs are interfaces that allow applications to communicate with each other and with the underlying platform. APIs can expose sensitive data or functionality to unauthorized or malicious users if they are not properly designed, implemented, or secured. Insecure APIs can result in data breaches, denial of service, unauthorized access, or code injection .

Once the SDLC reached the development phase, code starts to be generated. That means that the ability to control the version of the software or component that your team is working on, combined with check-in/check-out functionality and revision histories, is a necessary and powerful tool when developing software.

The question refers to a "new" product so I believe that is key. However, it also makes it seem that it is about the development of a product that could be in production.

Regression testing focuses on testing to ensure that changes that have been made do not create new issues, and ensure that no new vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, or other issues have been introduced.

A code review is a process that involves examining and evaluating the source code of a software application or system for security deficiencies, errors, bugs, or vulnerabilities. A code review can help improve the quality and security of the software product by identifying and fixing issues before they become operational problems. A code review is part of the evaluation and validation of a new product’s security capabilities. User acceptance testing, stress testing, or security regression testing are other types of testing that can be used to evaluate and validate a new product’s security capabilities, but they do not involve reviewing design changes at specific intervals for security deficiencies. Reference: https://www.synopsys.com/blogs/software-security/code-review/

HSM (Hardware Security Module) is a computing device that manages digital keys, performs encryption/decryption functions, and maintains other cryptographic functions2. HSM is a dedicated crypto processor that is specifically designed for the protection of the crypto key lifecycle. HSM can store cryptographic keys that are used for encryption, authentication, digital signatures, and other security functions. HSM can also generate random keys that are unique to each device and never leave the chip. HSM can protect these keys from unauthorized access or tampering by using hardware isolation and encryption3. HSM can also measure and verify the integrity of the operating system and firmware on a device by using a process called attestation. HSM does not manage cryptography (A), as cryptography is the science or art of creating and using secret codes. HSM does not manage physical keys ©, as physical keys are tangible objects that are used to lock or unlock something. HSM does not manage algorithms (D), as algorithms are sets of rules or instructions that are used to solve problems or perform tasks.

References: 2: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/24771/technical-controls  3: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/25888/security-development-lifecycle-sdl

A risk-based cybersecurity framework is a set of guidelines and best practices that helps an organization identify, assess, prioritize, and mitigate cyber risks. By using a risk-based approach, an organization can allocate its resources more efficiently and effectively to address the most critical and likely cyber risks. A risk-based approach does not always require quantifying each cyber risk, nor is it driven by regulatory compliance or prioritizes vulnerability remediation by threat hunting. Reference: https://www.nist.gov/cyberframework/risk-management

DLP (Data Loss Prevention) is what the CISO wants to purchase. DLP is a solution that prevents unauthorized or accidental disclosure of sensitive data by monitoring, detecting, and blocking data transfers or downloads that violate predefined policies or rules3. DLP can also track and classify data assets based on various criteria, such as name, type, content, or data profile4. DLP can help protect data from insider threats, external attackers, or human errors.

PII stands for personally identifiable information, and it is any data that can be used to identify, contact, or locate a specific individual, such as name, address, phone number, email, social security number, or biometric data. PII data is considered critical because it can be used by attackers to commit identity theft, fraud, or other crimes. PII data is also subject to various laws and regulations that require organizations to protect it from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure1.

PII (Personally Identifiable Information) is any information that can be used to identify, contact, or locate a specific individual, either by itself or when combined with other information1. PII by itself is information that can uniquely identify an individual without any additional information. Examples of PII by itself are:

• Government ID. A government ID is a number or code that is issued by a government authority to an individual for identification purposes. Examples of government IDs are social security numbers, passport numbers, driver’s license numbers, etc. A government ID can uniquely identify an individual without any additional information.
• Birth certificate. A birth certificate is a document that records the birth of an individual and contains information such as name, date of birth, place of birth, parents’ names, etc. A birth certificate can uniquely identify an individual without any additional information.

Other examples of PII by itself are biometric data, DNA profile, fingerprints, etc. Examples of information that are not PII by themselves are:

• Job title. A job title is a name or description of a position or role in an organization. A job title does not uniquely identify an individual without any additional information, as many individuals can have the same job title.
• Employment start date. An employment start date is the date when an individual began working for an organization. An employment start date does not uniquely identify an individual without any additional information, as many individuals can have the same employment start date.
• Employer address. An employer address is the location of an organization where an individual works. An employer address does not uniquely identify an individual without any additional information, as many individuals can work at the same employer address.
• Mother’s maiden name. A mother’s maiden name is the surname that a woman had before she married. A mother’s maiden name does not uniquely identify an individual without any additional information, as many individuals can have the same mother’s maiden name.

Other examples of information that are not PII by themselves are gender, race, ethnicity, age, etc.

A non-disclosure agreement (NDA) is a legally binding contract that establishes a confidential relationship between two or more parties and prevents them from sharing or using certain information that is deemed sensitive, proprietary, or valuable1. An NDA can be used to protect intellectual property (IP) such as trade secrets, inventions, designs, or business plans from being disclosed to competitors or the public2.

A company that wants to ensure a third party does not take its IP and build a competing product can use an NDA to restrict the access, use, and disclosure of its IP by the third party. For example, if the company hires a contractor to develop a software application, the company can require the contractor to sign an NDA that prohibits the contractor from copying, modifying, selling, or revealing the source code or any other details of the application to anyone else3. The NDA can also specify the duration, scope, and consequences of the confidentiality obligation.

Segmenting the network to include all legacy systems is a strategy that can prevent the propagation of the malware throughout the network, by isolating the systems that cannot be patched from the rest of the network. Segmenting the network can also reduce the exposure and impact of the malware, by limiting its access to other resources or systems.

A business impact analysis (BIA) should be completed first before risk calculation and prioritization. A BIA is a process that identifies and evaluates the potential effects of disruptions to critical business functions or processes. A BIA helps to determine the recovery priorities, objectives, and strategies for the organization’s assets and resources1. A BIA is a prerequisite for risk calculation and prioritization because it provides the basis for estimating the impact and likelihood of various threats and vulnerabilities on the organization’s operations, reputation, and finances2.

Resource exhaustion occurs when a system runs out of resources such as memory, CPU, disk space, or network bandwidth due to excessive demand or poor management1. In this case, the server statistics show that the CPU usage is 100%, the memory usage is 99%, and the disk usage is 98%, indicating that the system is suffering from resource exhaustion. This can affect the performance and availability of the system and its applications. A race condition (A) is a condition where the system’s behavior depends on the sequence or timing of other uncontrollable events2. Privilege escalation (B) is a situation where an attacker gains unauthorized access to higher privileges or permissions on a system3. VM escape (D) is a technique where an attacker breaks out of a virtual machine and interacts with the host operating system.

References: 1: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/31686/resource-exhaustion  2: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Race_condition  3: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/4111/privilege-escalation : https://www.techopedia.com/definition/32088/vm-escape

An active scan is a type of system vulnerability scan that involves sending probes or packets to the target system, and analyzing the responses or behaviors of the system. An active scan can help obtain critical information about the system, such as open ports, running services, operating system, software versions, etc. An active scan can also use OVAL XML language to review and calculate the discovered risk. OVAL stands for Open Vulnerability and Assessment Language, and it is a standard for describing and exchanging information about system vulnerabilities and configurations.

Scanning the network is what the user is attempting to do based on the log entries. The log entries show that the user is sending ping requests to various IP addresses on different ports using a proxy server. Ping requests are a common network diagnostic tool that can be used to test network connectivity and latency by sending packets of data and measuring their response time. However, ping requests can also be used by attackers to scan the network and discover active hosts, open ports, or potential vulnerabilities .

A firewall is a device or software that monitors and controls incoming and outgoing network traffic based on predefined rules or policies. A firewall can help prevent unauthorized or malicious traffic from entering or leaving a network, and protect network resources from external threats. Placing a firewall in between the corporate network and the guest network can help prevent a guest device from infecting machines on the corporate network or taking down the company’s single internet connection, as it can block or filter any unwanted or harmful traffic from the guest network.

A hacktivist is a type of actor who uses hacking techniques to promote a political or social cause or agenda. Hacktivists often target websites or systems of organizations or governments that they oppose or disagree with, and deface them with messages or propaganda related to their cause. In this case, the hacktivist defaced the corporate websites with political propaganda.

The analyst should disclose details regarding the findings of the vendor’s latest penetration test summary as the first recommendation, as this can help assess the vendor’s security posture and identify any potential risks or issues that may affect the organization. The analyst should review the findings and ask for more information about the scope, methodology, and remediation actions of the penetration test, as well as any evidence or artifacts that support the findings.

The disclosure section of an organization’s incident response plan should cover how the organization handles public or private disclosures of an incident. The disclosure section should contain the organization’s legal and regulatory requirements regarding disclosures, such as the type, content, format, timing, and recipients of the disclosures. The disclosure section should also specify the roles and responsibilities of the personnel involved in the disclosure process, such as who is authorized to make or approve disclosures, who is responsible for communicating with internal and external stakeholders, and who is accountable for ensuring compliance with the disclosure requirements. The disclosure section should not focus on how to reduce the likelihood customers will leave due to the incident (A), as this is a business objective rather than a disclosure requirement. The disclosure section should not include the names and contact information of key employees who are needed for incident resolution ©, as this is an operational detail rather than a disclosure requirement. The disclosure section should not contain language explaining how the organization will reduce the likelihood of the incident from happening in the future (D), as this is a remediation action rather than a disclosure requirement.

The objective of a BIA is to determine the potential impacts of various disruptions on the business processes and functions, and to establish the recovery priorities and objectives for each process and function. To achieve this objective, the analyst needs to consider various measures and metrics that can quantify the impacts and the recovery requirements. Some of the common measures and metrics that are used in a BIA are:

• Maximum downtime before impact is unacceptable: This metric defines the maximum amount of time that a business process or function can be disrupted without causing significant or irreversible damage to the organization’s reputation, operations, finances, or legal obligations. This metric is also known as the maximum tolerable downtime (MTD) or maximum tolerable period of disruption (MTPD). It helps to determine the recovery time objective (RTO), which is the target time for restoring the process or function to an acceptable level of service after a disruption1.
• Total time accepted for business process outage: This metric defines the total amount of time that a business process or function can be out of service within a given period, such as a day, a week, or a month. This metric is also known as the recovery point objective (RPO), which is the maximum amount of data loss or corruption that can be tolerated after a disruption1. It helps to determine the backup frequency and retention policy for the data and systems that support the process or function.
• Time required to inform stakeholders about outage: This metric defines the time frame for communicating with the internal and external stakeholders who are affected by or involved in the disruption and recovery of a business process or function. This metric helps to establish the crisis communication plan and protocol, which specifies who, what, when, where, why, and how to communicate during and after a disruption2. It also helps to manage the expectations and perceptions of the stakeholders and to maintain their trust and confidence in the organization.
• Time to reimage the server: This metric defines the time needed to restore a server to its original or desired state after a disruption. This metric helps to estimate the resources and efforts required for recovering the server and its applications. It also helps to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of different recovery strategies, such as restoring from backup, rebuilding from scratch, or replacing with a spare3.
• Minimum data backup volume: This metric defines the minimum amount of data that needs to be backed up regularly to ensure the continuity and integrity of a business process or function. This metric helps to optimize the backup process and reduce the storage costs and bandwidth consumption. It also helps to identify the critical data elements and sources that are essential for the process or function4.

The tasklist command is used to display a list of all running processes on a system. In this output, the security analyst should recognize the high memory usage (1302103K) of vscode.exe * 32, which is an indication that this process is consuming a large amount of system resources. This could be a sign that the system has been compromised, as malware often uses system resources to perform malicious activities.

Ransomware is a type of malware that encrypts the files or disks of a victim’s device and demands a ransom for the decryption key. Ransomware can cause significant damage, disruption, and data loss for individuals and organizations. To prevent this type of incident in the future, the best strategy is to combine user education and data protection. A ransomware awareness program can help users recognize and avoid potential ransomware attacks, such as phishing emails, malicious attachments, or compromised websites. A secure and verifiable backup system can help users recover their data in case of a ransomware infection, without paying the ransom or relying on the attackers. A backup system should be regularly tested and updated, and stored offline or in a separate location from the original data.

Implementing an air gap for the legacy systems is the best solution to improve their security posture. An air gap is a physical separation of a system or network from any other system or network that may pose a threat. An air gap can prevent any unauthorized access or data transfer between the isolated system or network and the external environment. Implementing an air gap for the legacy systems can help to protect them from being exploited by attackers who may take advantage of their unpatched vulnerabilities .

Generating hashes for each file from the hard drive is the next action that the analyst should perform to ensure the data integrity of the evidence. Hashing is a technique that produces a unique and fixed-length value for a given input, such as a file or a message. Hashing can help to verify the data integrity of the evidence by comparing the hash values of the original and copied files. If the hash values match, then the evidence has not been altered or corrupted. If the hash values differ, then the evidence may have been tampered with or damaged .

The output shows an entry from a system log that indicates a user was trying to download a password file from a remote system using PsExec. PsExec is a command-line tool that allows users to execute processes on remote systems. The entry shows that the user “administrator” tried to run PsExec with the following parameters: \192.168.1.100 -u administrator -p P@ssw0rd -c cmd.exe /c type c:\windows\system32\config\SAM > \192.168.1.101\c$\temp\sam.txt This means that the user tried to connect to the remote system with IP address 192.168.1.100 using the username “administrator” and password “P@ssw0rd”, copy cmd.exe to the remote system, and execute it with the command “type c:\windows\system32\config\SAM > \192.168.1.101\c$\temp\sam.txt”. This command attempts to read the SAM file, which contains hashed passwords of local users, and write it to a file on another system with IP address 192.168.1.101. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 8; https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/psexec

The line from this output that most likely indicates that attackers could quickly use brute force and determine the negotiated secret session key is TLS_DHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA 128 DH (1024 bits). This line indicates that the cipher suite uses Diffie-Hellman ephemeral (DHE) key exchange with RSA authentication, AES 128-bit encryption with cipher block chaining (CBC) mode, and SHA-1 hashing. The DHE key exchange uses a 1024-bit Diffie-Hellman group, which is considered too weak for modern security standards and can be broken by attackers using sufficient computing power. The other lines indicate stronger cipher suites that use longer key lengths or more secure algorithms. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 9; https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/secauthn/cipher-suites-in-schannel

Implementing a secure supply chain program with governance would be the best way to ensure the third-party service provider meets the requirement of only sourcing talent from its own country. A secure supply chain program is a set of policies, procedures, and controls that aim to protect the integrity and security of the products and services delivered by third-party vendors. A secure supply chain program can help mitigate the risks of geopolitical and national security interests by verifying the origin, identity, and trustworthiness of the vendors and their employees1. Governance is a key component of a secure supply chain program, as it provides oversight, accountability, and enforcement of the policies and procedures.

A security information and event management (SIEM) system is a tool that collects and analyzes log data from various sources and provides alerts and reports on security incidents and events. A SIEM system can help the IT team to determine which devices are USB enabled by querying the log data for events related to USB device insertion, removal, or usage. The other options are not relevant or effective for this purpose. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 15; https://www.sans.org/reading-room/whitepapers/analyst/security-information-event-management-siem-implementation-33969

An independent third-party audit report can provide the highest assurance of compliance with the organization’s policies by vendors, as it involves an objective and unbiased evaluation of the vendor’s security posture and practices by an external auditor who follows established standards and criteria. An independent third-party audit report can help verify if the vendor meets the organization’s requirements and expectations, as well as identify any gaps or weaknesses that need to be addressed.

The Controller Area Network - CAN bus is a message-based protocol designed to allow the Electronic Control Units (ECUs) found in today’s automobiles, as well as other devices, to communicate with each other in a reliable, priority-driven fashion. Messages or “frames” are received by all devices in the network, which does not require a host computer.

CAN bus stands for Controller Area Network bus, which is a communication protocol that allows different devices and components in a vehicle to communicate and exchange data. The vulnerability within the new fleet of vehicles is most likely targeting the CAN bus, because it could allow an attacker to manipulate or disrupt the operation of the vehicle. SCADA, Modbus, and IoT are other terms related to communication protocols or systems, but they are not specific to vehicles. Reference: https://www.csoonline.com/article/3218104/what-is-a-can-bus-and-how-can-it-be-hacked.html

Full disk encryption (FDE) is a technical control that encrypts all the data on a disk drive, including the operating system and applications. FDE prevents unauthorized access to the data if the disk drive is lost or stolen, as it requires a password or key to decrypt the data. FDE can be implemented using software or hardware solutions and can protect data at rest on laptops and other devices. The other options are not technical controls or do not reduce the risk of data loss if a laptop is lost or stolen. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 10; https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/security/information-protection/bitlocker/bitlocker-overview

Automated security controls testing is a method that uses tools or scripts to verify that the security controls of a system or device are configured correctly and comply with the organization’s policies and standards. Performing automated security controls testing of expected configurations prior to production would help prevent a recurrence of the risk exposure caused by missing antivirus, unnecessary ports enabled, and insufficient password complexity. Performing password-cracking attempts, Nmap scans, or antivirus scans on all devices before they are released to production are other methods that can help detect some security issues, but they are not as comprehensive or efficient as automated security controls testing. Reference: https://www.nist.gov/system/files/documents/2017/04/28/sp800-115.pdf

The correct answer is B. Document exceptions with compensating controls to demonstrate the risk mitigation efforts. Compensating controls are alternative or additional controls that are implemented when the primary or required controls are not feasible or effective. Compensating controls can help to reduce the risk to an acceptable level and satisfy the regulatory requirements, as long as they are documented and justified1.

A. Manually review the baselines daily and document the results in a change history log is not correct. This option would not prevent the recurrence of the problem, as it does not address the root cause of why the remote units did not recover after scans were performed. Moreover, this option would create an unsustainable process, as it would require a lot of time and resources to manually review and document the baselines of all assets on a daily basis.

C. Implement a new scanning technology to satisfy the monitoring requirement and train the team is not correct. This option would not guarantee that the problem would not recur, as it is possible that the new scanning technology would also cause issues with the remote units or other assets. Furthermore, this option would incur additional costs and efforts to acquire, deploy, and maintain the new scanning technology and train the team on how to use it.

D. Purchase new remote units from other vendors with a proven ability to support scanning requirements is not correct. This option would not be feasible or cost-effective, as it would require replacing all the remote units with new ones from different vendors. This option would also introduce new risks and challenges, such as compatibility, interoperability, or vendor lock-in.

VDI means virtual desktop interface. Using VDI, you can maintain a standard image and remove the threat of an infected machine plugging into your network.

A firewalled environment for client devices and a secure VDI (Virtual Desktop Infrastructure) for BYOD users would be the most likely recommendation for securing the proposed solution. A firewalled environment can help isolate and protect the client devices from unauthorized network access or attacks. A secure VDI can provide a virtualized desktop environment for BYOD users that can be centrally managed and controlled by the organization. A VDI can also prevent data leakage or malware infection from BYOD devices, as the data and applications are stored on the server side rather than on the device itself5.

Static analysis is a method of analyzing software code without executing it, by using tools or techniques that check for syntax errors, logic errors, vulnerabilities, coding standards, and other quality issues. Static analysis can help software developers to correct the error-handling capabilities of an application before pushing it to production, as it can detect potential errors and bugs at an early stage of development. A web-application vulnerability scan (A) is a method of testing web applications for security flaws by simulating attacks and analyzing responses. It can be useful for finding vulnerabilities in web applications, but not for validating the error-handling capabilities of an application. A packet inspection © is a method of monitoring network traffic by examining the data packets that are sent and received over a network. It can be useful for detecting malicious or unauthorized activity on a network, but not for validating the error-handling capabilities of an application. A penetration test (D) is a method of evaluating the security of a system or network by simulating real-world attacks and exploiting vulnerabilities. It can be useful for assessing the overall security posture of a system or network, but not for validating the error-handling capabilities of an application.

References: : https://www.techopedia.com/definition/14436/static-analysis : https://www.techopedia.com/definition/4160/web-application-security-scanner-was : https://www.techopedia.com/definition/4010/packet-inspection : https://www.techopedia.com/definition/13493/penetration-testing

This best describes the utility of the structured loC data contributed by other members of the information sharing and analysis center (ISAC) for its sector. loC stands for indicator of compromise, which is a piece of information that suggests a potential intrusion or attack, such as an IP address, a file hash, a domain name, or a malware signature. By sharing loC data, the ISAC members can benefit from each other’s threat intelligence and improve their security defenses.

The vulnerability assessment report shows that the device is using SSLv3, which is an outdated and insecure protocol for secure communication over a network. SSLv3 has several known vulnerabilities, such as POODLE, that allow attackers to decrypt or modify the encrypted data. To remediate this issue, the analyst should recommend reconfiguring the device to support only connections leveraging TLSv1.2, which is a newer and more secure protocol that provides stronger encryption, authentication, and integrity protection for the data transmitted over the network.

CVSS stands for Common Vulnerability Scoring System, and it is a standard for measuring and describing the severity of security-related software flaws. CVSS provides a numerical score and a vector string that represent the characteristics and impact of a vulnerability. CVSS can help prioritize remediation efforts and communicate risk levels to stakeholders.

Acceptance testing is a type of testing that involves verifying that an application meets the needs and expectations of the business and the end users. Acceptance testing is usually performed by users or customers who evaluate the application’s functionality, usability, performance, reliability, and compatibility. Acceptance testing helps to ensure that the application delivers the required value and quality before it goes into production.

SSH stands for Secure Shell, which is a protocol that allows remote access and administration of a server. If the organization has a policy that services must run on standard ports and unneeded services must be disabled, then SSH should be disabled on both servers, because it runs on port 22, which is not a standard port for a web server or a database server, and it is not needed for those servers to function properly. Disabling HTTPS on 192.168.10.1, disabling IIS on 192.168.10.1, disabling DNS on 192.168.10.1, or disabling MSSQL on 192.168.10.2 are not appropriate actions, because they would affect the functionality of the web server or the database server and violate the organization’s policy of running services on standard ports. Reference: https://www.ssh.com/ssh/port

Enabling the browser’s XSS filter would be the most likely solution to the listed vulnerability. The vulnerability is a reflected cross-site scripting (XSS) attack, which occurs when a malicious script is injected into a web page that reflects user input back to the browser without proper validation or encoding. The malicious script can then execute in the browser and perform various actions, such as stealing cookies, redirecting to malicious sites, or displaying fake content2. Enabling the browser’s XSS filter can help prevent reflected XSS attacks by detecting and blocking malicious scripts before they execute in the browser3.

 Indicator enrichment and research pivoting are steps in the threat intelligence process that involve gathering additional information and context about the indicators of compromise (IoCs) that are related to an incident, and using them to identify other potential sources of threat data or evidence. For example, an analyst can enrich an IoC such as an IP address by looking up its geolocation, reputation, or associated domains, and then pivot to other sources of threat intelligence that may have more information about the IP address or its activities.

The analyst decided to include a custom lookup for these files on the endpoint’s log-in script as a mechanism to improve existing detection capabilities, by checking if any of these files are present on the endpoints during log-in. This can help identify any compromised endpoints that may have been infected by the zero-day vulnerability, and alert the analyst for further investigation or response.

A buffer overflow is a type of attack that exploits a vulnerability in an application or program that does not properly check the size or boundaries of an input. A buffer overflow occurs when an attacker supplies more data than the buffer can hold, causing the excess data to overwrite adjacent memory locations. This can result in unpredictable behavior, such as crashes, errors, data corruption, or execution of malicious code2 The tool that the analyst ran against the executable supplied an input that was too long for the buffer allocated by the executable. This caused a buffer overflow in the executable’s memory, as indicated by the error message “Segmentation fault (core dumped)”.

A security analyst is reviewing the network security monitoring logs listed below and is most likely observing that 10.1.1.129 sent potential malicious requests to the web server and that 10.1.1.130 can potentially obtain information about the PHP version. The logs show that 10.1.1.129 sent two requests to the web server with suspicious parameters, such as “union select” and “or 1=1”, which are commonly used for SQL injection attacks. The logs also show that 10.1.1.130 sent a request to the web server with a parameter “phpinfo”, which is a function that displays information about the PHP configuration and environment, which can be useful for attackers to find vulnerabilities or exploit them. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 8; https://owasp.org/www-community/attacks/SQL_Injection; https://www.php.net/manual/en/function.phpinfo.php

A forensic analyst is conducting an investigation on a compromised server. The first step that the analyst should do to preserve evidence is to back up all log files and audit trails. This will ensure that the analyst has a copy of the original data that can be used for analysis and verification. Backing up the log files and audit trails will also prevent any tampering or modification of the evidence by the attacker or other parties. The other options are not the first steps or may alter or destroy the evidence. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 16; https://www.nist.gov/publications/guide-collection-and-preservation-digital-evidence

The hosts are most likely part of a reflective denial-of-service attack. A reflective denial-of-service attack is a technique that allows attackers to both magnify the amount of malicious traffic they can generate and obscure the sources of the attack traffic. This type of distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack overwhelms the target, causing disruption or outage of systems and services. A reflective denial-of-service attack works by spoofing the target’s IP address and sending requests to vulnerable servers that will respond to the target. The servers act as reflectors that bounce back the responses to the target, amplifying the attack volume and hiding the attacker’s identity1. The output shows that host 10.20.30.40 is sending requests with a spoofed source IP address of 192.168.1.10 to host 203.0.113.15 on port 123, which is used by the Network Time Protocol (NTP). NTP is a common protocol used for reflection/amplification attacks, as it can generate large responses to small requests2.

Logical segmentation is a technique that divides a network into smaller, isolated segments based on logical criteria, such as function, role, or application. Logical segmentation can be implemented using various technologies, such as VLANs, subnets, virtual firewalls, or software-defined networking (SDN). Logical segmentation can enhance the security of a network by reducing the attack surface, limiting the lateral movement of threats, enforcing the principle of least privilege, and facilitating the monitoring and auditing of network traffic12.

Firewall is a device or software that filters and controls the incoming and outgoing network traffic based on predefined rules or policies. Firewall can be deployed at the network perimeter or within the network to create internal zones or segments. Firewall can protect a network from unauthorized access, malicious attacks, or data exfiltration by allowing or blocking traffic based on the source, destination, port, protocol, or application3 .

To best provide the protection that meets the requirements of the security engineer, each product line should be logically segmented and firewalled to control inbound and outbound connectivity. This way, each product line can be secured using a single posture that is consistent and manageable. Each product line can also communicate with the other lines in a least privilege method by allowing only the necessary traffic and blocking the rest. Access to each product line from the rest of the network can be strictly controlled by applying firewall rules that restrict or limit the traffic based on the business needs.

https://www.techtarget.com/searchsecurity/definition/data-masking

Masking is a technique that involves replacing or hiding some parts of sensitive information with symbols or characters, such as asterisks (*) or Xs. Masking can help safeguard the confidentiality of sensitive information while allowing limited access to authorized individuals, because it obscures the original data without altering its format or structure. For example, masking can be used to hide some digits of a credit card number or a social security number. Deidentification, hashing, or salting are other techniques that involve transforming or modifying sensitive information, but they do not allow limited access to authorized individuals. Reference: https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/ims/14.1?topic=masking-data

The analyst should isolate the container from production using a predefined policy template first. Isolating the container is a containment measure that can help prevent the spread of the compromise to other containers or systems in the cloud infrastructure. Containment is an important step in the incident response process, as it can limit the impact and damage of an incident. Using a predefined policy template can help automate and standardize the isolation process, ensuring that it is done quickly and consistently1.

The communication plan is an important part of incident response, as it outlines how and when information about the incident should be shared with external entities.

A communication plan is a set of procedures and protocols that define how an organization should communicate with external entities during times of emergency or security incident. The plan typically outlines how and when information about the incident should be shared, and ensures that any relevant stakeholders are informed of the incident in a timely manner. It also serves as a guide for determining what information to share with outside parties. Here is a link to an article from CompTIA's website about the importance of a communication plan for incident response for your reference: https://www.comptia.org/content/incident-response-communication-plan

Multifactor authentication is a method of verifying a user’s identity by requiring two or more pieces of evidence, such as something the user knows (e.g., password), something the user has (e.g., token), or something the user is (e.g., fingerprint). Multifactor authentication is the best compensating control to help reduce authentication compromises when the organization’s enterprise password complexity rules are inadequate for its required security posture. Smart cards, biometrics, or increased password-rotation frequency are other possible controls, but they are not as effective or comprehensive as multifactor authentication. Reference: https://www.csoonline.com/article/3239144/what-is-multifactor-authentication-mfa-how-it-works-and-why-you-need-it.html

Data Loss Prevention (DLP) is a security technology designed to detect, prevent, and respond to the unauthorized disclosure of confidential data. By updating the DLP rules and metadata, it is possible to better define what types of confidential information can be shared and limit access to any sensitive documents.

DLP rules and metadata can help to identify, classify and label sensitive data based on its content and context. DLP rules and metadata can also help to enforce actions or policies on sensitive data, such as blocking, encrypting or alerting .

If were referring to other devices, yes - Implement BIOS passwords before they are compromised. But the ones that were already compromised, they need to be removed from the system to avoid further exploitation. Plus, if you put a password on there, the attacker may now have your password.

Remove the assets from the production network for analysis. If the analyst receives an alert about unauthorized changes to the firmware versions on several field devices, the best action to recommend to the asset owners is to remove the assets from the production network for analysis. This would prevent further exploitation of the devices by isolating them from potential attackers and allow the analyst to investigate the source and nature of the unauthorized changes. Changing the passwords on the devices, implementing BIOS passwords, or reporting the findings to the threat intel community are other possible actions, but they are not as effective or urgent as removing the assets from the production network for analysis. Reference: https://www.sans.org/reading-room/whitepapers/incident/incident-handlers-handbook-33901

The planning stage of the SDLC process is when the project scope, objectives, requirements, risks, and deliverables are defined and agreed upon by all stakeholders. This stage also involves creating a project plan that outlines the tasks, resources, schedule, budget, and communication channels for the project.

The planning stage is crucial for ensuring that the project is aligned with the business goals and customer needs, and that the project team has a clear vision and direction for the development process. By overlooking this stage, the SOC staff did not receive contact details or escalation procedures to follow in case of a high-severity bug, which could have serious consequences for the security and functionality of the web application.

Data enrichment is the result that the security team hopes to accomplish by adding these sources to the SIEM. Data enrichment is a process that enhances, refines, or otherwise improves raw data by adding context, meaning, or value to it. Data enrichment can help security analysts gain more insights from the events processed by the SIEM, such as identifying the root cause, severity, or impact of an incident3. Data enrichment can also help security analysts correlate events from different sources and reduce false positives or negatives.

A CASB, or Cloud Access Security Broker, is a software tool or service that acts as an intermediary between an organization’s cloud services and its users. A CASB can provide various security functions, such as visibility, compliance, threat protection, and data security2 A CASB can help protect the company’s data stored in the cloud by preventing certain types of data from being downloaded to a workstation, such as sensitive or confidential information. This can reduce the risk of data leakage, theft, or loss if a workstation is compromised or stolen.

The suspicious event was able to accomplish establishing persistence by creating a registry change that runs a command shell process every time a user logs on. The registry change modifies the Userinit value under the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon key, which specifies what programs should run when a user logs on to Windows. By appending “cmd.exe,” to the existing value, the event ensures that a command shell process will be launched every time a user logs on, which can allow the attacker to maintain access to the system or execute malicious commands. The other options are not related to the registry change. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 10; https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/sysinfo/userinit-entry

Data privacy policy is the organization’s policy that defines how it collects, uses, stores, and shares personal data of its customers, employees, or other stakeholders. Data privacy policy also covers how the organization complies with relevant data protection laws and regulations, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). The policy statements listed in the question are examples of data privacy policy provisions that aim to protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of personal data.

APTs utilize methods and technologies differently than other threats. APTs stand for Advanced Persistent Threats, and they are sophisticated and stealthy attacks that target specific organizations or networks over a long period of time, often with political or financial motives. APTs utilize methods and technologies differently than other threats, such as using custom-made malware, exploiting zero-day vulnerabilities, leveraging social engineering techniques, or employing multiple vectors of attack. APTs can also evade detection by existing security tools or controls, by using encryption, obfuscation, proxy servers, or other techniques to hide their activities or communications.

The Internet usage trend report shows that User 4 has an unusually high amount of data downloaded compared to other users. User 4 downloaded 2.5 GB of data in one day, while the average data downloaded by other users was around 0.2 GB. This could indicate that User 4 is engaged in some suspicious or malicious activity, such as downloading unauthorized or illegal content, exfiltrating sensitive data, or installing malware. Therefore, the security analyst should investigate User 4 further to determine the nature and source of the data downloaded.

MFA can be used to reduce the likelihood that the attacker gains access to the VM, however, the scenario specifically states that the attacker was able to escalate rights and the question asks what can be done to remediate the vulnerability. the vulnerability in this case would be the ability to escalate rights.

The best way to remediate the vulnerability is to update to the secure hypervisor version. A hypervisor is a software that creates and manages virtual machines on a physical server. A hypervisor can be vulnerable to various attacks, such as privilege escalation, code injection, or denial-of-service. Updating to the secure hypervisor version can help fix any known bugs or flaws in the hypervisor software and prevent attackers from exploiting them. Updating to the secure hypervisor version can also provide additional security features or enhancements that can improve the protection of the virtual machines and their data.

A hash is a mathematical function that produces a unique value for a given input. A hash can be used to verify that a bit-level image copy of a hard drive is an exact clone of the original hard drive by comparing the hash values of both drives. If the hash values match, then the drives are identical. If the hash values differ, then there is some discrepancy between the drives. Inserting the hard drive on a test computer and booting the computer, recording the serial numbers of both hard drives, or comparing the file-directory listing of both hard drives are not reliable methods to verify that a bit-level image copy of a hard drive is an exact clone of the original hard drive. Reference: https://www.forensicswiki.org/wiki/Hashing

Fuzzing is a technique that involves sending random, malformed, or unexpected inputs to an application to trigger errors, crashes, or vulnerabilities. Fuzzing can be used to test the robustness and security of software, especially when the source code is not available or the input format is complex1. Fuzzing can also simulate abnormal user behavior, such as entering invalid data, clicking on random buttons, or sending malicious requests2.

Fuzzing tools are software programs that automate the process of generating and sending inputs to the application under test. There are different types of fuzzing tools, such as black-box fuzzers, white-box fuzzers, and grey-box fuzzers, depending on the level of information and feedback they have about the application1. Some examples of fuzzing tools are AFL, Peach, and [Sulley].

Polymorphic methods are techniques that allow fuzzing tools to modify or mutate the inputs in different ways, such as changing the length, value, type, or structure of the data. Polymorphic methods can increase the diversity and effectiveness of the inputs and help discover more bugs or vulnerabilities in the application .

Therefore, using fuzzing tools with polymorphic methods would be the best approach to test a new application that simulates abnormal user behavior to find software bugs. This approach would generate a large number of inputs that cover various scenarios and edge cases and expose any flaws or weaknesses in the application’s functionality or security.

Data sovereignty is the idea that data are subject to the laws and governance structures of the nation where they are collected1 Data sovereignty issues can impact organizational initiatives that involve transferring or storing data across different jurisdictions, such as moving to a cloud-based environment. Cloud computing involves using remote servers and networks to store and process data, which may be located in different countries or regions with different data protection laws and regulations2 This can create challenges for organizations that need to comply with data sovereignty requirements of their own country or their customers’ countries, such as data localization, data access, data security, data breach notification, etc3

References: 1 Data sovereignty - Wikipedia 2 What Is Data Sovereignty? Everything You Need to Know - Permission.io 3 What is data sovereignty? - IONOS

The Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) is a standard for measuring the severity of vulnerabilities in software systems. One of the factors that affects the CVSS score is the attack vector, which describes how the vulnerability can be exploited. The possible values for the attack vector are network, adjacent network, local, or physical. In this case, the analyst should choose local as the value for the attack vector, because the Tomcat configuration file must be modified for the attack to be successful, which implies that the attacker needs local access to the system. Network, adjacent network, or physical are not appropriate values for the attack vector in this scenario. Reference: https://www.first.org/cvss/v3.1/specification-document#Vector-String

Segregation of duties is a security control that requires multiple people to be involved with completing a task. This helps prevent fraud, as it ensures that no one individual has the ability to commit fraud or make mistakes without other people being aware of it

Disabling the Telnet service would harden the server by removing an insecure protocol that transmits data in cleartext and could allow unauthorized access to the server. Changing the SSH port to a non-standard port would harden the server by reducing the exposure to brute-force attacks or port scans that target the default SSH port (22). Uninstalling the DNS service, performing a vulnerability scan, changing the server’s IP to a private IP address, or blocking port 80 with the host-based firewall would not harden the server or could affect its functionality as a web server. Reference: https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/support/docs/ip/access-lists/13608-21.html

According to the risk mitigation policy, risks with a probability of 95% or greater will be addressed first, regardless of the impact. Therefore, risk D is the highest priority, as it has a probability of 95% and an impact of $100,000. The next priority is risk A, which has a probability of 90% and an impact of $200,000. The remaining risks will be prioritized based on their risk value, which is calculated by multiplying the probability and the impact. Risk C has a risk value of $40,000 (80% x $50,000), while risk B has a risk value of $30,000 (60% x $50,000). Therefore, risk C is higher priority than risk B.

 A security information and event management (SIEM) system is a tool that collects and analyzes log data from various sources and provides alerts and reports on security incidents and events. A security analyst can create a custom rule on a SIEM system to automate the incident response process for malware infections. For example, the analyst can create a rule that triggers an alert email when the SIEM system detects logs that match the criteria of malware infection, such as process name, file name, file hash, etc. The alert email can be sent within 30 minutes or any other desired time frame. The other options are not suitable or sufficient for this purpose. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 15; https://www.sans.org/reading-room/whitepapers/analyst/security-information-event-management-siem-implementation-33969

Documenting the respective chain of custody and performing a memory dump of the mobile device for analysis would help during the forensic analysis of the mobile device. The chain of custody is a record of who handled the evidence, when, where, how, and why. The chain of custody helps to preserve the integrity and admissibility of the evidence by preventing tampering, alteration, or loss1. A memory dump is a process of capturing and storing the contents of the device’s memory (RAM) for analysis. A memory dump can help to recover volatile data that may be lost when the device is powered off or rebooted, such as running processes, network connections, encryption keys, or malware traces2.

A mobile device wiping solution is a security feature that allows an organization to remotely erase or delete all data on a mobile device if it is lost or stolen2 A mobile device wiping solution can help protect the privacy of the data on a device and prevent unauthorized access or disclosure of sensitive information. A mobile device wiping solution can be implemented using built-in features of some mobile operating systems, third-party applications, or mobile device management (MDM) software.

Role-based access control (RBAC) is a method of restricting access to resources based on the roles of users within an organization. RBAC assigns permissions and privileges to roles, rather than individual users, and grants access based on the principle of least privilege3 RBAC can help mitigate the risk of privilege escalation attacks on SCADA devices by ensuring that only authorized users have access to SCADA administration and management functions, and that they have the minimum level of access required to perform their tasks.

 According to the CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives1, one of the skills required for the exam is to “apply incident response procedures and analyze potential indicators of compromise (IOCs)”. The document also states that “the first step in incident response is to contain the incident and prevent further damage” (page 14).

Based on this information, the best answer to your question is C. Remove the malware from the host. This would prevent the malware from spreading to other machines or exfiltrating data from the infected host.

Using whole disk encryption is the best option to protect the data on the remote users’ laptops. Whole disk encryption is a technique that encrypts all data on a hard disk drive, including the operating system, applications and files. Whole disk encryption can prevent unauthorized access to the data if the laptop is lost, stolen or compromised. Whole disk encryption can also protect the data from physical attacks, such as removing the hard disk and connecting it to another device .

Requests sent from the same IP address using different user agents are likely to be malicious or suspicious, as they indicate that an attacker is trying to evade detection or bypass security controls by changing their browser or device identification. These requests may indicate that an attacker is using automated tools or scripts to scan or attack the web server.

Requests identified by a threat intelligence service with a bad reputation are also likely to be malicious or suspicious, but they are not the source of the activity, as they originate from different IP addresses. These requests may indicate that an attacker is trying to exploit a vulnerability or perform reconnaissance on the web server.

Requests blocked by the web server per the input sanitization are not likely to be the source of the activity, as they indicate that the web server has successfully prevented an attack by validating and filtering any malicious input from the requests. These requests may indicate that an attacker is trying to inject malicious code or commands into the web server.

Failed log-in attempts against the web application are not likely to be the source of the activity, as they indicate that the web application has successfully prevented unauthorized access by verifying and rejecting any invalid credentials from the requests. These requests may indicate that an attacker is trying to guess or brute-force passwords or usernames for the web application.

Requests sent by NICs with outdated firmware are not likely to be the source of the activity, as they indicate that some devices on the network have not been updated with the latest security patches or features for their network interface cards (NICs). These requests may indicate that some devices are vulnerable to network attacks or have performance issues.

Existence of HTTP/501 status codes generated to the same IP address are not likely to be the source of the activity, as they indicate that the web server has encountered an error or does not support a request method from the client. These requests may indicate that an attacker is trying to use an invalid or unsupported method to access the web server.

The hosts file is a text file that maps hostnames to IP addresses, and it can be used to override DNS resolution. The hosts file entries that should be used for further investigation are the ones that point to external or suspicious IP addresses, such as 198.51.100.5, which is a reserved IP address for documentation purposes. The other entries are either loopback addresses (::1 and 127.0.0.1) or internal network addresses (192.168.3.249), which are less likely to be malicious.

The security analyst should recommend replacing the strcpy function with a safer alternative. The strcpy function is a C library function that copies a string from one buffer to another. However, this function does not check the size of the destination buffer, which can lead to buffer overflow vulnerabilities if the source string is longer than the destination buffer. Buffer overflow vulnerabilities can allow attackers to execute arbitrary code or crash the program. A safer alternative to strcpy is strncpy, which limits the number of characters copied to the size of the destination buffer.

Credentialed scanning is a method of vulnerability scanning that uses valid user credentials to access the target systems and perform a more thorough and accurate assessment of their security posture. Credentialed scanning can help to reduce the number of false positives by allowing the scanner to access more information and resources on the systems, such as configuration files, registry keys, installed software, patches, and permissions .