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

Dynamic analysis is a method for end-to-end vulnerability assessment that involves testing an application while it is running, by simulating user inputs, network traffic, or environmental conditions. Dynamic analysis can help identify security issues that may arise from the interaction between different components of the application, such as logic flaws, input validation errors, or session management weaknesses.

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:

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 .

A PCI assessment should be conducted prior to the deployment of a new application that contains SPI (Sensitive Personal Information). A PCI assessment is an evaluation of how well an organization complies with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), which is a set of requirements for protecting cardholder data. PCI DSS applies to any organization that stores, processes, or transmits cardholder data, such as credit card numbers, expiration dates, or security codes4. A PCI assessment can help identify and remediate any gaps or weaknesses in the security controls of an application that handles cardholder data.

A good approach for modeling the client’s attack surface is to look at attacks against similar industry peers and assess the probability of the same attacks happening. This can help the consultant to identify the most relevant and likely threats for the client based on their industry sector, size, location, and other factors. This can also help the consultant to prioritize the most critical risks and recommend appropriate mitigation strategies. Asking for external scans from industry peers (A) may not be feasible or reliable, as industry peers may not share their scan results or have different security configurations and vulnerabilities than the client. Discussing potential tools the client can purchase (B) may not be effective, as tools alone cannot reduce the likelihood of an attack without proper implementation and management. Meeting with senior management team (D) may not be helpful, as funding is not directly related to modeling the attack surface and may depend on other factors such as budget constraints and risk appetite.

Port 22 is the default port for Secure Shell (SSH), which is a protocol that allows remote access and administration of a server. If the server is dedicated to one function (web server) and unneeded services are disabled, then port 22 should be closed, because SSH is not necessary for a web server and could pose a security risk if exploited. Port 80, port 443, and port 1433 are ports that are needed for a web server, because they are used for HTTP, HTTPS, and SQL Server respectively. Reference:

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:

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;

Deploying whitelisting to the identified workstations would be the best method to protect these workstations from threats. Whitelisting is a technique that allows only authorized applications, processes, or users to run or access a system or resource. Whitelisting can help limit the attack surface and prevent malware or unauthorized software from running on a system3. Deploying whitelisting to the workstations that are at the end of life can help mitigate the risk of exploitation due to lack of patches or support from the vendor.

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 .

 The analyst should check for change tickets as the next step, given that the firewall is reporting different firmware versions on scans than were reported in previous scans. Change tickets are records of any authorized changes made to a system or a network, such as updating firmware, installing patches, or modifying configurations. Checking for change tickets can help verify if the firmware change was intentional and approved, or if it was unauthorized or malicious.

Investing in a failover and redundant system, as necessary, is the best solution to improve the availability of the organization’s systems based on past incidents. A failover system is a backup system that automatically takes over the operation of a primary system in case of a failure or outage. A redundant system is a duplicate system that runs simultaneously with the primary system and provides backup functionality if needed. Investing in a failover and redundant system can help to ensure that the organization’s systems are always available and can handle the workload without interruption or degradation .

Spoofing, tampering, repudiation, information disclosure, denial of service, and elevation of privilege are part of a known threat modeling method called STRIDE. STRIDE is a mnemonic that stands for six categories of threats that can affect the security of a system or application. STRIDE was developed by Microsoft in 1999 and has been widely adopted as a threat modeling method by many organizations. STRIDE can help identify and prioritize potential threats based on their impact and likelihood1.

User acceptance testing is a process of verifying that a software application meets the requirements and expectations of the end users before it is released to production. User acceptance testing can help to validate the functionality, usability, performance and compatibility of the software application with real-world scenarios and feedback . User acceptance testing can involve various teams, such as developers, testers, customers and stakeholders.

A risk assessment is a process of identifying, analyzing, and evaluating the potential threats and vulnerabilities that may affect an organization’s assets, operations, or objectives. A risk assessment matrix is a tool that can help prioritize the risks based on their likelihood and impact1.

The CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System) is a standard framework for rating the severity of vulnerabilities in software systems. The CVSS provides a numerical score from 0 to 10, as well as a qualitative rating from Low to Critical, based on the characteristics and consequences of the vulnerability2.

However, the CVSS score alone may not be sufficient to determine the priority of mitigation and remediation actions for each vulnerability. Other factors that may influence the decision include:

• Patch availability: This metric indicates whether there is a fix or update available for the vulnerability from the vendor or developer. Patch availability can affect the urgency and feasibility of remediation, as well as the risk exposure and potential damage of exploitation. For example, a vulnerability with a high CVSS score but with a readily available patch may be less critical than a vulnerability with a lower CVSS score but with no patch available3.
• Mission criticality: This metric reflects the importance and value of the asset or system affected by the vulnerability to the organization’s mission, goals, or functions. Mission criticality can affect the impact and priority of remediation, as well as the risk tolerance and acceptance level of the organization. For example, a vulnerability with a high CVSS score but affecting a non-essential system may be less critical than a vulnerability with a lower CVSS score but affecting a core system4.
• OS type: This metric indicates the operating system (OS) of the asset or system affected by the vulnerability. OS type can affect the likelihood and complexity of exploitation, as well as the availability and compatibility of patches or mitigations. For example, a vulnerability with a high CVSS score but affecting an uncommon or unsupported OS may be less critical than a vulnerability with a lower CVSS score but affecting a widely used or supported OS3.
• OS or application versions: This metric indicates the specific version of the OS or application affected by the vulnerability. OS or application versions can affect the applicability and relevance of the vulnerability, as well as the availability and compatibility of patches or mitigations. For example, a vulnerability with a high CVSS score but affecting an outdated or obsolete version may be less critical than a vulnerability with a lower CVSS score but affecting a current or popular version3.
• System architecture: This metric indicates the design and configuration of the asset or system affected by the vulnerability. System architecture can affect the exposure and accessibility of the vulnerability, as well as the effectiveness and efficiency of patches or mitigations. For example, a vulnerability with a high CVSS score but affecting an isolated or segmented system may be less critical than a vulnerability with a lower CVSS score but affecting an interconnected or integrated system3.

Therefore, to best enable the organization to prioritize its efforts based on impact, patch availability is one of the most important metrics to consider in addition to the CVSS score for each CVE (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures). Patch availability can directly influence the risk level and remediation strategy for each vulnerability.

A VPN is a secure network connection that allows users to access their private corporate networks over the internet, while keeping the connection encrypted and secure. This makes it an ideal solution for providing the development team with secure connectivity from the corporate network to a three-tier cloud environment.

Building the chain-of-custody document is the procedure that must be completed first for this type of evidence acquisition. The chain-of-custody document is a record that tracks the handling and custody of digital evidence from the time it is collected until it is presented in court. The chain-of-custody document should include information such as the media model, serial number, size, vendor, date, and time of acquisition, as well as the names and signatures of the persons who handled, transferred, or examined the evidence. The chain-of-custody document helps to preserve the integrity and admissibility of the evidence by preventing tampering, alteration, or loss1.

The correct answer is B. The analyst should block requests to no-thanks.invalid. The log snippet shows a DNS query from host 192.168.1.67 to the public resolver 8.8.8.8 for the domain name no-thanks.invalid, which is resolved to the IP address 102.100.20.20. This is a possible indicator of compromise (IOC), as no-thanks.invalid is a known malicious domain that is used by attackers to exfiltrate data or execute commands on compromised hosts1. The analyst should block requests to this domain to prevent further communication with the attacker’s server and investigate the host 192.168.1.67 for signs of infection.

A. The analyst should disable DNS recursion is not correct. DNS recursion is a process where a DNS server queries other DNS servers on behalf of a client until it finds the authoritative answer for a domain name2. Disabling DNS recursion would prevent the DNS server from resolving any domain names that are not in its cache or zone files, which would affect the normal functionality of the network and the internet access of the clients.

C. The analyst should disconnect host 192.168.1.67 is not correct. Disconnecting host 192.168.1.67 would stop the communication with the malicious domain, but it would also disrupt the legitimate activities of the host and its user. Moreover, disconnecting the host would not remove the malware or root cause of the compromise, and it would not prevent the host from reconnecting to the malicious domain once it is online again.

D. The analyst should sinkhole 102.100.20.20 is not correct. Sinkholing is a technique that redirects malicious or unwanted traffic to a controlled destination, such as a fake or isolated server3. Sinkholing 102.100.20.20 would prevent the communication with the malicious domain, but it would also require access and control over the public resolver 8.8.8.8, which is not owned or managed by the analyst or the company.

E. The analyst should disallow queries to the 8.8.8.8 resolver is not correct. Disallowing queries to the 8.8.8.8 resolver would prevent the communication with the malicious domain, but it would also affect the resolution of other legitimate domain names that are not in the local DNS server’s cache or zone files.

1: DNS Tunneling: how DNS can be (ab)used by malicious actors 2: What Is DNS Recursion? 3: What Is a Sinkhole Attack?

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)?]

Detailed Explanation: Security regression testing is a type of testing that verifies that the security features and functionality of an application are not compromised or broken by any changes or updates in the code2. Security regression testing can help to ensure that the application follows industry best practices for secure coding and does not introduce any new vulnerabilities or weaknesses. Security regression testing can be performed manually or automatically using tools or scripts that check for common security flaws and compliance with security standards. Security regression testing can also help to validate the error-handling capabilities of an application by testing how it responds to different types of inputs and scenarios. Input validation (A) is a technique that checks whether the inputs to an application are valid and expected before processing them3. Input validation can help to prevent some types of security attacks, such as injection attacks or buffer overflows, but it is not a way to verify that an application follows industry best practices for secure coding. Input validation is part of secure coding, not a way to test it. Application fuzzing © is a technique that tests an application by sending random or malformed inputs to it and observing its behavior4. Application fuzzing can help to discover some types of security vulnerabilities, such as memory leaks or crashes, but it is not a comprehensive way to verify that an application follows industry best practices for secure coding. Application fuzzing may not cover all possible inputs and scenarios and may not check for compliance with security standards. User acceptance testing (D) is a technique that tests an application by involving end users or customers in evaluating its functionality and usability. User acceptance testing can help to ensure that an application meets the user requirements and expectations, but it is not a reliable way to verify that an application follows industry best practices for secure coding. User acceptance testing may not focus on security aspects and may not detect subtle or hidden security flaws. Stress testing (E) is a technique that tests an application by subjecting it to high levels of load or demand. Stress testing can help to evaluate the performance and reliability of an application under extreme conditions, but it is not a relevant way to verify that an application follows industry best practices for secure coding. Stress testing does not check for security issues and may not reflect normal usage patterns.

References: 2: 3: 4: : :

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.

The solution will address the findings that the development team used a new software language that was not supported by the security team's automated assessment tools and the security assessment team was unfamiliar with the new language and struggled to evaluate the software during advanced testing. The training of the security assessment team and working with the automated assessment-tool vendor to add support for the new language will ensure that future deployments of the new technology are secure and the vulnerabilities are detected and prevented.

This is the technique that the analyst should use to analyze the increase in failed login attempts on the network. Event correlation is a process that analyzes multiple events or logs from different sources and identifies patterns, relationships, or causal links between them. Event correlation can help reveal the root cause, scope, impact, and sequence of a security incident.

MFA stands for multi-factor authentication, which 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). MFA is the best control to help prevent credential stuffing attacks from being successful, because even if an attacker obtains a valid username and password from a breached site, they would still need another factor to access the target site. SIEM, IDS, and TLS are other security controls, but they are not as effective as MFA for preventing credential stuffing attacks. Reference:

A blacklist is a list of domains, IP addresses, email addresses, or other identifiers that are known or suspected to be malicious or harmful. A blacklist can be used to block or filter unwanted or dangerous traffic from reaching a network or system2 Updating the blacklist can help prevent phishing campaigns by adding the domains or email addresses of the phishing sources to the list and preventing them from sending emails to the company’s employees.

SOAR (Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response) reduces the amount of human intervention required, which is an advantage over SIEM (Security Information and Event Management). SIEM is a tool that collects, analyzes, and correlates data from various sources, such as logs, alerts, and events, to provide security monitoring and incident detection. SIEM can help security teams identify and prioritize potential threats, but it still requires manual intervention to investigate and respond to incidents2. SOAR is a tool that builds on SIEM by automating and orchestrating various security tasks and workflows, such as incident response, threat hunting, and threat intelligence. SOAR can help security teams reduce manual effort, improve efficiency, and accelerate incident resolution3.

Lime-based cookies are a type of cookies that use lime encoding to store data in a web browser. Lime encoding is a simple substitution cipher that replaces each character in a string with another character based on a fixed key. Lime-based cookies are easy to decode because the key is publicly available and the encoding algorithm is simple. Anyone who intercepts or accesses the lime-based cookies can easily decode them and read the data stored in them. This is a security concern because lime-based cookies are often used for session management, which means they store information about the user’s identity and preferences on a web application. If an attacker can decode the lime-based cookies, they can impersonate the user or access their sensitive information.

 Consumer IoT devices are devices that connect to the internet and provide various functions or services for personal or home use, such as smart speakers, cameras, thermostats, etc. Consumer IoT devices should be avoided in an enterprise environment because they may pose security risks or challenges for the organization’s network and data. Some of the reasons why consumer IoT devices should be avoided are:

• The devices may have weak or known passwords: Many consumer IoT devices come with default or hardcoded passwords that are easy to guess or find online. Some devices may not allow users to change their passwords or enforce strong password policies. This can make them vulnerable to brute-force attacks or unauthorized access by attackers.
• The devices may utilize unsecure network protocols: Many consumer IoT devices use unsecure network protocols to communicate with other devices or servers, such as HTTP, FTP, Telnet, etc. These protocols do not encrypt or authenticate the data they transmit or receive, which can expose them to interception, modification, or spoofing by attackers.

 The first step the analyst should take to prevent further spread of the mining operation is to quarantine all the impacted hosts for forensic analysis. Quarantining the hosts can help isolate them from the network, and prevent them from communicating with other devices or servers that may be part of the mining operation. Forensic analysis can help identify the source and scope of the infection, and provide clues for remediation and recovery.

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.

The first action that should be taken to prevent a more serious compromise is to check the hash signatures, comparing them with malware databases to verify if the files are infected. This will help to determine if the changes to hash signatures were caused by malicious software or legitimate updates. If the files are infected, they should be quarantined and removed from the network. Checking the hash signatures will also help to identify the type and source of the malware, which can inform further actions such as blocking malicious domains or IPs, updating antivirus signatures, or notifying users3.

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.

Reverse engineering is a process of analyzing a system or a component to understand how it works and how it was made. Reverse engineering can be used to examine malicious processes captured from memory and determine their functionality, origin, and purpose. Reverse engineering can help identify the type of malware, its infection vector, its capabilities, its communication methods, and its indicators of compromise2

A communications plan is a document that outlines who should be notified and how during an incident response. It can also specify the roles and responsibilities of the incident response team members, the escalation procedures, and the communication channels. Consulting the communications plan is the most appropriate next step in an incident response plan after determining a security incident has occurred. Consulting the malware analysis process, the disaster recovery plan, or the data classification process may be relevant at later stages of the incident response, but not as the next step. Reference:

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 honeypot is a decoy system that is designed to attract and trap attackers, by mimicking a real system or network, but containing fake or harmless data. A honeypot can be used to collect IoCs from multiple geographic regions, by deploying it in different locations or networks, and monitoring the activities or attacks that target it. A honeypot can also provide valuable threat intelligence data that can be sold to customers.

Continuous monitoring uses automation to identify threats and alerts in real time. This is an advantage of continuous monitoring as a way to help protect an enterprise because it enables faster detection and response to security incidents, reduces the risk of human error, and improves the overall security posture and compliance of the organization.

A false positive is a condition in which harmless traffic is classified as a potential network attack by a NIDS. A NIDS is a network intrusion detection system that monitors network traffic for any signs of malicious or anomalous activity. A false positive can result in unnecessary alerts or actions by the NIDS, such as blocking legitimate traffic or generating false alarms. False positives can be caused by various factors, such as misconfigured rules, outdated signatures, noisy network traffic or benign anomalies3 .

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.

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.

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.

DMARC stands for Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance. It is an email authentication protocol that helps prevent spoofing and phishing attacks by verifying that the sender’s domain matches the domain in the email header. DMARC also provides a way for domain owners to specify how receivers should handle unauthenticated messages from their domain1

A custom script is a piece of code that can be written to perform a specific task or automate a process. A custom script can be used to gather patch information on a specific server by querying the server’s operating system, registry, or patch management software and retrieving the relevant data. A custom script can be more flexible and efficient than other methods, such as Event Viewer, SCAP software, or CI/CD, which may not provide the exact information needed or may require additional steps or tools.

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.

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:

Threat intelligence can be used to identify likely attack scenarios within an organization based on the organization’s specific vulnerabilities, assets, and threat landscape. Threat intelligence can help security teams anticipate and prepare for potential attacks, as well as detect and respond to ongoing attacks more effectively1. Threat intelligence can also provide insights into the threat actors, their motivations, and their tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs)2.

Reporting this activity as a false positive, as the activity is legitimate, is the best way for the security analyst to respond. A false positive is a condition in which harmless traffic is classified as a potential network attack by a security monitoring tool. Ping requests are a common network diagnostic tool that can be used to test network connectivity issues. The technician who responded to potential network connectivity issues was performing a legitimate task and did not pose any threat to the accounting and human resources servers .

The calc entry is a suspicious registry entry that should be investigated first by the analyst. The calc entry is located in the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run registry key, which is a common location for malware to persist and execute on system startup. The calc entry has a data value of “C:\Windows\System32\calc.exe”, which is the path to the legitimate Windows Calculator program. However, this program does not need to run on system startup, and it could be a disguise for a malicious executable that has replaced or renamed the original calculator program. The calc entry could also be a sign of a fileless malware attack, where the attacker uses the legitimate calculator program to execute malicious commands or scripts in memory1.

PHI stands for protected health information, which is any information that relates to the health or health care of an individual and can be used to identify that person. PHI is regulated by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), which sets national standards for the privacy and security of health information. HIPAA requires covered entities, such as health care providers, health plans, and health care clearinghouses, to notify individuals and regulatory agencies of any breach of unsecured PHI. A breach is defined as the unauthorized acquisition, access, use, or disclosure of PHI that compromises the privacy or security of the information

According to the CompTIA CySA+ (CS0-002) best practices, the most useful information data points to provide to the security manager for communicating the risk factors to senior management are the impact and adversary capability. The impact refers to the potential consequences of a successful attack or exploitation of a vulnerability, such as data loss or system compromise. The adversary capability refers to the ability of an attacker to exploit a vulnerability, including their technical expertise and resources. Together, these data points help to provide a complete picture of the risk associated with a vulnerability, and allow senior management to make informed decisions regarding risk mitigation and remediation. The other data points, such as probability, attack vector, classification, and indicators of compromise, can also be valuable, but the impact and adversary capability are considered the most critical for prioritizing risk mitigation efforts.

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.

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.

"User acceptance testing (UAT) is the last phase of the software testing process. During UAT, actual software users test the software to make sure it can handle required tasks in real-world scenarios, according to specifications."

User acceptance testing is the software development process by which function, usability, and scenarios are tested against a known set of base requirements. User acceptance testing (UAT) is the final stage of software development before production. It is used to get feedback from users who test the software and its user interface (UI). UAT is usually done manually, with users creating real-world situations and testing how the software reacts and performs. UAT is used to determine if end-users accept software before it’s made public. Client or business requirements determine whether it fulfills the expectations originally set in its development2.

Sanitizing the workstation and verifying countermeasures are restored are part of the eradication and recovery processes that the security analyst should perform next. Eradication is the process of removing malware or other threats from the affected systems, while recovery is the process of restoring normal operations and functionality to the affected systems. Sanitizing the workstation can involve deleting or wiping any malicious files or programs, while verifying countermeasures are restored can involve checking and updating any security controls or settings that may have been compromised .

Communicate the security incident to the threat team for further review and analysis. This would allow the threat team to investigate the source and nature of the malicious traffic and create appropriate alerts or signatures to detect it in the future. Sharing details with human resources, noting the incident, or reporting it to a manager would not increase the chance of detection.

The correct answer is D. Use a VPN to access the company’s data in the home office and keep the current solution for the business applications. A virtual private network (VPN) is a technology that creates a secure and encrypted connection over a public network, such as the internet. A VPN can allow users to access resources on a remote network, such as a server, as if they were on the same local network. A VPN can provide shared access from the remote office to the company’s data in the home office, while maintaining security and privacy1.

The security analyst should set up a PKI (Public Key Infrastructure) between Company A and Company B and exchange shared certificates between the two entities. This will allow them to establish a more automated approach to secure data transfers between their ERP systems. A PKI is a system that provides encryption and authentication services using public key cryptography. A PKI consists of certificates, certificate authorities (CAs), and other components that enable users to securely exchange data over untrusted networks. By exchanging shared certificates between Company A and Company B, they can verify each other’s identity and encrypt their data using public and private keys.

Server1 and svchost.exe

The correct answer is D. Both policies have some overlap, but the differences can have regulatory consequences. Privacy and security policies are both important for companies to protect their data and comply with various laws and regulations. However, privacy and security policies are not the same, and they have different goals and requirements.

Privacy policies are nontechnical controls that define how a company collects, uses, shares, and protects personal information from its customers, employees, or partners. Privacy policies are based on the principles of data minimization, consent, transparency, and accountability. Privacy policies aim to respect the rights and preferences of data subjects and comply with different privacy regulations, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)1.

Security policies are technical or nontechnical controls that define how a company protects its data and systems from unauthorized access, modification, or destruction. Security policies are based on the principles of confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Security policies aim to prevent or mitigate the impact of cyberattacks and comply with different security standards, such as the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) or the ISO/IEC 27000 series2.

Privacy and security policies have some overlap, as they both involve data protection and compliance. However, they also have some differences, as they address different aspects and risks of data processing. For example, a company may have a strong security policy that encrypts its data, but it may still violate a privacy policy if it collects or shares more data than necessary or without consent. Conversely, a company may have a clear privacy policy that informs its customers about its data practices, but it may still suffer a security breach if it does not implement adequate security measures3.

Data auditing is the most essential and effective method to protect PII from an insider threat. Data auditing is the process of monitoring and recording the activities and events related to data access and usage. Data auditing can help detect and prevent any suspicious or anomalous behavior by an insider threat who tries to access or manipulate PII.

Data auditing can provide several benefits for data protection, such as:

• It can provide accountability and transparency for data access and usage, which can deter potential insider threats from abusing their privileges or violating policies.
• It can provide evidence and traceability for data incidents, which can help investigate and respond to data breaches or leaks by insider threats.
• It can provide feedback and insights for data security improvement, which can help identify and address any gaps or weaknesses in data protection measures.

Data auditing can be done by using tools such as logs, alerts, reports, or dashboards. These tools can help security analysts track and analyze data activity and identify any patterns or anomalies that indicate a possible insider threat.

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.

The output shows the result of using OWASP ZAP’s Spider tab after a vulnerability scan was completed. The Spider tab allows users to crawl web applications and discover pages and resources that can be assessed for vulnerabilities. The output shows that the scanner discovered various pages under different directories, such as /admin/, /blog/, /contact/, etc., as well as some parameters and forms that can be used for testing inputs and outputs. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 9;

This is the most effective way to improve performance, as it allows you to reduce the amount of domains in the blocklist and reduce the size of the ACLs. By reviewing the blocklist and removing domains that are no longer active or no longer pose a threat, the blocklist can be reduced and the ACLs updated accordingly. This will reduce the amount of traffic and processing power required to manage the blocklist, and can help improve overall performance.

This is most likely occurring based on the symptoms observed after a recent sales meeting. An insider threat is a person who has legitimate access to an organization’s network or data and uses it for malicious purposes, such as stealing, leaking, or sabotaging information. The symptoms suggest that someone from the sales team or someone who attended the meeting has copied sensitive corporate documents and uploaded them to the dark web using large data packets.

 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.

An email banner is a message that is added to the top or bottom of an email to provide some information or warning to the recipient. An email banner should be implemented to identify emails coming from external sources to prevent exposure of sensitive information and reduce the risk of corporate data being stored on non-corporate assets. An email banner can help employees recognize phishing or spoofing attempts and avoid clicking on malicious links or attachments. It can also remind employees not to share confidential information with external parties or forward corporate emails to personal accounts. The other options are not relevant or effective for this purpose. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 13;

 Cryptomining malware, or cryptojacking, is a type of malware that hides on a device and uses its computing resources to mine for valuable online currencies like Bitcoin. Cryptomining malware can cause performance issues, increased energy consumption, overheating, or hardware damage1 The analyst encountered cryptomining malware on the web server, as indicated by the following signs:

• The analyst was unable to log in remotely or on the console, as the malware blocked access to prevent detection or removal.
• The console messages showed that the server was running out of memory and CPU resources, as the malware consumed all available resources for mining.
• The network captures showed many packets with a signature of “Stratum”, which is a protocol used for communication between miners and mining pools2

The best step for the analyst to take next is to reboot the server and disable any cron jobs or startup scripts that start the mining software. This can help stop the mining activity and restore access to the server. The analyst should also scan the server for any other traces of malware and remove them.

Promiscuous mode is the mode that must be supported by the scanner’s NIC to assist with the company’s request of passive network monitoring. Promiscuous mode is a mode of operation for a network interface controller (NIC) that causes the controller to pass all traffic it receives to the central processing unit (CPU) rather than passing only the frames that the controller is specifically programmed to receive. This mode is normally used for packet sniffing, the practice of collecting and logging packets that pass through the network for further analysis, such as the analysis of traffic or bandwidth usage1. Promiscuous mode makes sure all transmitted data packets are received and read by network adapters.

A directory traversal attack is a type of web application attack that exploits insufficient input validation or improper configuration to access files or directories that are outside the intended scope of the web server. The log entries given in the question show several requests that contain “…/” sequences in the URL, which indicate an attempt to move up one level in the directory structure. For example, the request “/images/…/…/etc/passwd” tries to access the /etc/passwd file, which contains user account information on Linux systems. If successful, this attack could allow an attacker to read, modify, or execute files on the web server that are not meant to be accessible.

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.

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:

Domain Keys Identified Mail (DKIM) is an email authentication method that uses a digital signature to let the receiver of an email know that the message was sent and authorized by the owner of a domain1 DKIM helps prevent phishing emails that spoof or impersonate other domains by verifying the identity and integrity of the sender. DKIM works by adding a DKIM signature header to each outgoing email message, which contains a hash value of selected parts of the message and the domain name of the sender. The sender’s domain also publishes a public key in its DNS records, which can be used by the receiver to decrypt the DKIM signature and compare it with its own hash value of the message. If they match, it means that the message was not altered in transit and that it came from the claimed domain.

The attack is a SQL injection attack. SQL injection is a type of attack that exploits a security vulnerability in an application’s software that allows user input to be executed as SQL commands by the underlying database3. SQL injection can enable an attacker to perform various malicious actions on the database, such as reading, modifying, deleting or creating data; executing commands; or bypassing authentication. The request shows that the attacker has entered a malicious SQL statement in the username parameter that attempts to drop (delete) all tables in the database.

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 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:

 A sinkhole is a technique that redirects malicious network traffic to a controlled destination, such as a fake server or a black hole. A sinkhole can be used to stop malicious communications with a command-and-control server by preventing the malware from reaching its intended destination. A high entropy level means that the sinkhole can generate random domain names that match the changing domain name used by the malware for callback. Blocking TCP/443 at the edge router, disabling TCP/53 at the perimeter firewall, or configuring the DNS forwarders to use recursion are other possible actions that could stop malicious communications, but they could also disrupt legitimate services that use those protocols or settings. Reference:

Static analysis is the process of reviewing malware files without running them, by using tools such as hex editors, strings, and signature scanners. Static analysis can help extract basic information from malware files, such as file type, size, checksum, metadata, imports, exports, etc. Static analysis can also help identify known malware samples based on their signatures or hashes.

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:

Authentication is a method of verifying a user’s identity by requiring some piece 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). Authentication is the best method to prevent unauthorized use of an API, because it ensures that only legitimate users can access or use the API functions or data. HTTPS, geofencing, or rate limiting are other methods that can enhance the security or performance of an API, but they do not prevent unauthorized use of an API. Reference:

A secure supply chain program is a set of processes and practices that aim to protect the supply chain from various risks, such as cyberattacks, data breaches, fraud, theft, sabotage, or natural disasters1. A secure supply chain program can help to ensure the integrity, availability, and confidentiality of the products, services, data, and systems involved in the supply chain. A secure supply chain program with governance means that there are clear roles, responsibilities, policies, procedures, and controls for managing the security of the supply chain. This can help to monitor and enforce the compliance of the third-party service provider with the requirement to source talent from its own country. A secure supply chain program with governance can also help to identify and mitigate any potential threats or vulnerabilities in the supply chain. Implementing blacklisting for IP addresses from outside the country (B) may not be sufficient or effective, as IP addresses can be spoofed or bypassed by attackers. Implementing strong authentication controls for all contractors © may not be relevant or adequate, as authentication controls do not prevent the sourcing of talent from other countries. Implementing user behavior analytics for key staff members (D) may not be applicable or useful, as user behavior analytics do not verify the origin or location of the talent.

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.

SQLi stands for SQL injection, which is a type of attack that injects malicious SQL statements into a web application’s input fields or parameters. The attacker can use SQLi to execute unauthorized commands on the database server, such as adding a new user or retrieving sensitive data. The entry in the server logs shows an example of a SQLi attack that tries to add a new user named attacker with the password 1337password. CSRF, XSS, and RCE are other types of attacks, but they do not match the description of the entry in the server logs. Reference:

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.

CAN bus (Controller Area Network) is a vehicle bus standard designed to allow microcontrollers and devices to communicate with each other’s applications without a host computer1. CAN bus is a message-based protocol, designed originally for multiplex electrical wiring within automobiles to save on copper, but it can also be used in many other contexts. CAN bus enables each device to send and receive data on a shared network, reducing the need for complex wiring and increasing reliability and performance. CAN bus is one of the five protocols used in the on-board diagnostics (OBD)-II vehicle diagnostics standard. A vulnerability within the new fleet of vehicles that the company recently purchased is most likely targeting CAN bus, as it is a common and critical communication system in modern vehicles. An attacker could exploit a vulnerability in CAN bus to compromise or manipulate various vehicle functions or systems, such as braking, steering, engine control, airbags, etc. SCADA (A) stands for Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition, which is a system that monitors and controls industrial processes or infrastructure2. SCADA is not a vehicle bus standard and is not likely to be targeted by a vulnerability within a fleet of vehicles. Modbus © is a serial communications protocol that connects industrial electronic devices3. Modbus is not a vehicle bus standard and is not likely to be targeted by a vulnerability within a fleet of vehicles. IoT (D) stands for Internet of Things, which is a network of physical objects that are embedded with sensors, software, and other technologies to connect and exchange data with other devices and systems over the internet. IoT is not a vehicle bus standard and is not likely to be targeted by a vulnerability within a fleet of vehicles.

References: 1: 2: 3: :

The security team should perform postmortem data correlation next after receiving notification of the incident from the help desk technician. Postmortem data correlation is an activity that involves analyzing data from various sources (such as logs, alerts, reports, etc.) to identify root causes, impacts, indicators of compromise (IoCs), lessons learned, and recommendations for improvement after an incident3. Postmortem data correlation can help the security team to:

• Determine how the incident occurred and how it was detected and resolved
• Assess the scope and severity of the incident and its effects on confidentiality, integrity, and availability
• Identify any gaps or weaknesses in security controls or processes that contributed to the incident
• Develop action plans or remediation strategies to prevent recurrence or mitigate future incidents

A data governance program is a collection of practices, policies, and procedures that manage, leverage, and protect the data assets of an organization1. It requires changing the workplace culture and adding some software1. To survey sensitive data within the organization, the most accurate method is to perform an enterprise-wide discovery scan that can identify and classify data from various sources and systems2. This way, the analyst can have a comprehensive view of the data landscape and its quality, security, accessibility, and usage. Consulting with an internal data custodian (B) or reviewing enterprise-wide asset inventory © may provide some insights, but not as accurate or complete as a discovery scan. Creating a survey and distributing it to data owners (D) may be time-consuming and unreliable, as data owners may not have the full knowledge or awareness of their data.

References: 1: 2:

 The order of priority for risk mitigation from highest to lowest is C, B, A, D. This order is based on applying the risk mitigation policies of the organization. According to the first policy, risks without compensating controls will be mitigated first if the risk value is greater than $50,000. Risk C has no compensating controls and a risk value of $75,000, so it is the highest priority. Risk B also has no compensating controls, but a risk value of $40,000, so it is the second priority. According to the second policy, other risk mitigation will be prioritized based on risk value. Risk A has a risk value of $60,000 and a compensating control of encryption, so it is the third priority. Risk D has a risk value of $50,000 and a compensating control of backup power supply, so it is the lowest priority.

Web server enumeration is the process of identifying information about a web server, such as its software version, operating system, configuration, services, and vulnerabilities. This can be done using tools like Nmap, which can scan ports and run scripts to gather information. In this question, the Nmap command is using the -p option to scan ports 80, 8000, and 443, which are commonly used for web services. It is also using the --script option to run scripts that start with http-*, which are related to web server enumeration. The output file name server.out also suggests that the purpose of the scan is to enumerate web servers. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 8;

Threat hunting is a proactive process of searching for signs of malicious activity or compromise within a system or network, by using hypotheses, indicators of compromise, and analytical tools. Threat hunting can help improve detection capabilities by identifying unknown threats, uncovering gaps in security controls, and providing insights for remediation and prevention. Vulnerability scanning (A) is a reactive process of scanning systems or networks for known vulnerabilities or weaknesses that can be exploited by attackers. It can help identify and prioritize vulnerabilities, but not proactively hunt for threats. Red teaming © is a simulated attack on a system or network by a group of ethical hackers who act as adversaries and try to breach security controls. It can help test the effectiveness of security defenses and response capabilities, but not proactively hunt for threats. Penetration testing (D) is similar to red teaming, but with a more defined scope and objective. It can help evaluate the security of a system or network by simulating real-world attacks and exploiting vulnerabilities, but not proactively hunt for threats.

References: : : : :

TPM (Trusted Platform Module) is a hardware chip that provides security features using unique keys2. TPM can store cryptographic keys that are used for encryption, authentication, digital signatures, and other security functions. TPM can also generate random keys that are unique to each device and never leave the chip. TPM can protect these keys from unauthorized access or tampering by using hardware isolation and encryption3. TPM can also measure and verify the integrity of the operating system and firmware on a device by using a process called attestation. TPM does not ensure platform confidentiality by storing security measurements (B), as security measurements are used for attestation, not confidentiality. TPM does not improve management of OS installation ©, as OS installation is not directly related to TPM functionality. TPM does not implement encryption algorithms for hard drives (D), as encryption algorithms are implemented by software such as BitLocker, which can use TPM keys for encryption.

References: 2: 3: :

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.

A buffer overflow is an attack technique that exploits a vulnerability in a program’s memory management, by sending more data than the buffer can hold. This can cause the program to overwrite adjacent memory locations, and execute arbitrary code injected by the attacker.

A tabletop scenario is an informal, discussion-based session in which a team discusses their roles and responses during an emergency, walking through one or more example scenarios. A tabletop scenario is the best approach for a company that wants to test a new incident response plan without impacting the environment or using many resources. A tabletop scenario can help the company identify strengths and weaknesses in their plan, clarify roles and responsibilities, and improve communication and coordination among team members. The other options are more intensive and disruptive exercises that involve simulating a real incident or attack. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 16;

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.

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;

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.

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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:

A port scan generated the output. A port scan is a type of attack that probes a host or a network for open ports or services. A port scan can help an attacker discover potential vulnerabilities or entry points for further exploitation. The output shows that tcpdump captured packets with different flags, such as SYN, ACK, RST, and FIN, which indicate different stages of the TCP three-way handshake or connection termination. The output also shows that the source IP address 192.168.1.100 sent packets to different destination ports on the target IP address 192.168.1.101, such as 22, 23, 25, 80, and 443. These are common ports that an attacker would scan to find out what services are running on the target.

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:

A cipher suite is a set of algorithms that defines how the encryption, authentication, and integrity of data are performed during a secure communication session. Some cipher suites are considered vulnerable or weak because they use outdated or insecure algorithms that can be easily broken or compromised by attackers. The vulnerability scan results show that the web server accepts several vulnerable cipher suites, such as RC4, MD5, or DES. The best action for the analyst to recommend to developers is to change the web server so it no longer accepts the vulnerable cipher suites and only accepts the secure ones. Changing the web server so it only accepts TLSv1.2, only accepts cipher suites using AES and SHA, or offloading SSL/TLS to a WAF and load balancer are other possible actions, but they are not as specific or effective as changing the web server so it no longer accepts the vulnerable cipher suites. Reference:

A retinal scan is a biometric authentication method that uses the unique pattern of blood vessels in the retina to verify a person’s identity. It is considered a strong and reliable authentication method that would enhance the datacenter’s security. A physical key, a passphrase, or a fingerprint are other authentication methods, but they are not as secure or reliable as a retinal scan. Reference:

Setting up a warm disaster recovery site with the same cloud provider in a different region can help to achieve a recovery time objective (RTO) of 12 hours while keeping the costs low. A warm disaster recovery site is a partially configured site that has some of the essential hardware and software components ready to be activated in case of a disaster. A warm site can provide faster recovery than a cold site, which has no preconfigured components, but lower costs than a hot site, which has fully configured and replicated components. Using the same cloud provider can help to simplify the migration and synchronization processes, while using a different region can help to avoid regional outages or disasters .

A script is a program that can automate tasks or perform actions on a computer system. A script can be used to attempt multiple login attempts with different credentials, either randomly or from a list of known or guessed usernames and passwords. This can be done to gain unauthorized access to a system or to test its security12.

Users 4 and 5 are not using their credentials to transfer files or run tasks, because the report shows that they have failed login attempts on multiple servers. If they were authorized users, they would not have failed login attempts. Also, transferring files or running tasks does not require multiple login attempts on different servers.

A bot is a software application that runs automated tasks over the Internet. A bot can also be used to perform brute-force attacks, which are repeated attempts to guess a password or other authentication information. However, a bot would not use login credentials in a script, but rather generate random or common passwords to try3.

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 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.

data exfiltration is the unauthorized transfer of data from an organization’s network to an external destination, usually for malicious purposes such as espionage, sabotage, or theft. The details given in the question suggest that data exfiltration is occurring from an endpoint device. The bursts of network utilization every seven days indicate periodic data transfers. The content being transferred appears to be encrypted or obfuscated to avoid detection or analysis. The persistent outbound TCP connection from the host to infrastructure in a third-party cloud indicates a possible command and control channel for an attacker. The HDD utilization on the device grows by 10GB to 12GB over the course of every seven days, and single file sizes are 10GB, indicating that large amounts of data are being collected and compressed before being exfiltrated.

A memory dump is a snapshot of the contents of the random access memory (RAM) of a system at a given point in time. A memory dump can provide valuable information for a forensic examiner who is investigating possible malware compromise on an active endpoint device, such as running processes, open files, network connections, encryption keys, or malware artifacts. Creating a memory dump from RAM should be the first step that the examiner performs, as it preserves the volatile data that could be lost or altered if the system is powered off or rebooted1.

The most secure states for the certificate authority server when it is not in use are powered off and air gapped. Powering off the server will prevent any unauthorized access or tampering with the server while it is idle. Air gapping the server will isolate it from any network connections, making it inaccessible to remote attackers or malware. These measures will help to protect the integrity and confidentiality of the certificate authority server and its keys.

The security analyst should review the IDS rule set first. The IDS (Intrusion Detection System) is a tool that monitors network traffic and alerts on any suspicious or malicious activity. The IDS rule set is a set of conditions or patterns that define what constitutes normal or abnormal behavior on the network. The IDS rule set can affect the number of security incidents being reported, as it determines what triggers an alert or not3. The security analyst should review the IDS rule set to check if it is up to date, accurate, and comprehensive. If the IDS rule set is outdated, inaccurate, or incomplete, it may miss some incidents or generate false positives or negatives.

mstsc.exe is the process name for Remote Desktop Connection, a program that allows users to connect to remote computers or servers over a network or the Internet12. mstsc.exe is an indicator of system compromise if the user did not initiate or authorize a remote connection, as it may mean that an attacker has gained access to the system and is using it to connect to other systems or exfiltrate data3.

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.