CS0-002 CompTIA CySA+ Certification Exam (CS0-002) Questions and Answers

The analyst should check if temporary files are being monitored first to respond to the issue. Temporary files are files that are created and used by applications for various purposes, such as storing data temporarily or caching data for faster access. However, temporary files are not meant to be permanent and are usually deleted when they are no longer needed or when the application is closed. Therefore, monitoring temporary files can generate many alerts from the file-integrity monitoring tool that are not relevant or useful for security purposes. The analyst should check if temporary files are being monitored and exclude them from the monitoring scope to reduce the number of alerts and focus on the files that should not change.

IaC stands for infrastructure as code, which is a practice of using code or configuration files to automate the provisioning and management of cloud resources. IaC templates can help ensure consistency, repeatability, and scalability of cloud deployments, as well as reduce human errors and misconfigurations. However, IaC templates need to be validated and tested before deployment, and any changes to the templates should be controlled and monitored. This can help minimize the occurrence of vulnerabilities introduced by unintentional misconfigurations in the cloud

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

SCAP is a protocol designed to assess the security compliance of computers and other devices. It works by scanning systems against security policies, and can help verify that the scanned device meets security requirements. Here is a link to the CompTIA CySA+ Guide's Chapter 5 - Access Controls for more information: https://certification.comptia.org/docs/default-source/exam-objectives/cs0-002.pdf

Reverse engineering is the process of analyzing a binary file without executing it, by using tools such as disassemblers, debuggers, and decompilers. Reverse engineering can help identify the functionality, behavior, and purpose of a binary file, as well as any malicious code or vulnerabilities it may contain.

A managerial control is a function of management that involves setting performance standards, measuring performance, and taking corrective actions when necessary. A managerial control helps to regulate the organizational activities and ensure that they are aligned with the organizational goals and objectives1. One of the functions of a managerial control is to help design and implement the security planning, program development, and maintenance of the security life cycle. The security life cycle is a process that defines the phases of security activities from initiation to disposal2. A managerial control can help to establish the security policies, procedures, roles, and responsibilities for each phase of the security life cycle. A managerial control can also help to monitor and evaluate the security performance and effectiveness of each phase and take corrective actions if needed.

The grep command is a tool that searches for a pattern of characters in a file or input and prints the matching lines1 The egrep command is a variant of grep that supports extended regular expressions, which allow more complex and flexible pattern matching2 The more command is a filter that displays the contents of a file or input one screen at a time3 The pipe symbol (|) is used to redirect the output of one command to the input of another command. The redirection symbol (>) is used to redirect the output of a command to a file.

The command given in option C performs the following steps:

• It uses the more command to display the contents of the webserver.log file.
• It pipes the output of the more command to the grep command, which searches for lines that contain ‘*.xls’, which is a pattern that matches any file name ending with .xls (a spreadsheet file extension).
• It pipes the output of the grep command to the egrep command, which searches for lines that contain ‘return=200’, which is a pattern that matches any HTTP status code of 200 (which indicates a successful request).
• It redirects the output of the egrep command to a file named accessreport.txt, which contains the date, time, and IP address associated with any spreadsheet downloads.

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

The Nmap command given in the question performs a TCP SYN scan (-sS), a service version detection scan (-sV), an OS detection scan (-O), and a port scan for ports 1-1024 (-p 1-1024) on the host 192.168.1.1. This command will reveal information about the host’s operating system, open ports, and running services, which can be used by an attacker to launch a brute-force attack against the host. A brute-force attack is a method of guessing passwords or encryption keys by trying many possible combinations until finding the correct one. An attacker can use the information from the Nmap scan to target specific services or protocols that may have weak or default credentials, such as FTP, SSH, Telnet, or HTTP.

Option C shows a device that can perform a forensic copy of a hard drive. A forensic copy, also known as a forensic image or a bit-stream image, is an exact, unaltered digital copy of a piece of digital evidence. A forensic copy captures everything on the hard drive, including active and latent data, and preserves the integrity of the original evidence. A forensic copy can be used for forensic analysis without risking any changes to the original drive1. Option C shows a device that can connect to two hard drives and create a forensic copy from one drive to another using a write-blocker. A write-blocker is a tool that prevents any data from being written to the destination drive, ensuring that only a read-only copy is made2.

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: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/24771/technical-controls  2: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/25888/security-development-lifecycle-sdl  3: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/31686/resource-exhaustion : https://www.techopedia.com/definition/13493/penetration-testing

This solution is the best to accomplish the goal of blocking all non-corporate managed machines from connecting to the internal network. NAC stands for network access control, which is a method of enforcing policies and rules on network devices based on their identity, role, location, and other attributes. 802.1X is a standard for port-based network access control, which authenticates devices before granting them access to a network port or wireless access point.

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

The DMARC record’s policy tag is incorrectly configured and explains why the company’s requirements are not being processed correctly by mailbox providers. The policy tag (p) specifies how mailbox providers should handle messages from the domain that fail DMARC checks. The possible values for the policy tag are none, quarantine, or reject1. None means that no action is taken on failed messages and only reports are sent. Quarantine means that failed messages are treated as suspicious and may be filtered or marked as spam. Reject means that failed messages are rejected and not delivered. In this case, the company’s DMARC record has a policy tag value of none, which means that mailbox providers will not ignore any email that fails DMARC as required by the company. Instead, mailbox providers will deliver all messages from the domain regardless of their DMARC status and only send reports to the company. To fix this issue, the company should change its policy tag value to reject, which means that mailbox providers will reject and ignore any email that fails DMARC as required by the company. The DMARC record’s DKIM alignment tag (A) is not incorrectly configured and does not explain why the company’s requirements are not being processed correctly by mailbox providers. The DKIM alignment tag (adkim) specifies how strictly mailbox providers should match DKIM identifiers with From domain identifiers2. The possible values for DKIM alignment tag are s or r. S means strict alignment, which means that DKIM identifiers must exactly match From domain identifiers. R means relaxed alignment, which means that DKIM identifiers must match From domain identifiers at an organizational level (e.g., subdomain.example.com and example.com are considered aligned). In this case, the company’s DMARC record has a DKIM alignment tag value of r, which means that mailbox providers will use relaxed alignment for DKIM verification. 

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

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 C. Detection and monitoring. Detection and monitoring is a function that involves collecting, analyzing, and correlating data from various sources, such as threat feeds, logs, alerts, or events, to identify and respond to potential or ongoing threats. Detection and monitoring can help the organization to consume multiple threat feeds simultaneously and to provide actionable intelligence to various teams, such as security operations center (SOC) analysts, incident responders, or threat hunters. Detection and monitoring can also help the organization to leverage the intelligence to enrich security event data, such as adding context, severity, or priority to the events1.

A. Vulnerability management is not correct. Vulnerability management is a function that involves identifying, assessing, and mitigating the weaknesses or flaws in systems, applications, or networks that could be exploited by attackers. Vulnerability management can help the organization to reduce its attack surface and prevent potential breaches, but it does not directly involve consuming multiple threat feeds simultaneously or providing actionable intelligence to various teams.

B. Risk management is not correct. Risk management is a function that involves identifying, analyzing, and evaluating the risks that could affect the organization’s assets, operations, or objectives. Risk management can help the organization to prioritize and implement appropriate controls or mitigation strategies to reduce the likelihood or impact of the risks, but it does not directly involve consuming multiple threat feeds simultaneously or providing actionable intelligence to various teams.

D. Incident response is not correct. Incident response is a function that involves preparing for, detecting, containing, analyzing, and recovering from security incidents that compromise the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of the organization’s assets or operations. Incident response can help the organization to minimize the damage and restore normal operations as quickly as possible, but it does not directly involve consuming multiple threat feeds simultaneously or providing actionable intelligence to various teams.

1: Cybersecurity Analyst+ - CompTIA

https://owasp.org/www-community/attacks/Password_Spraying_Attack

A credential stuffing attack would be using the full credentials and most likely being used across many common platforms. A credential stuffing attack depends on the reuse of passwords. With so many people reusing their passwords for multiple accounts, just one set of credentials is enough to expose most or all of their accounts.

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

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

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

 The security analyst should implement a control that uses built-in functions from libraries to check and handle long numbers properly. This will help prevent integer overflow vulnerabilities, which occur when a value is moved into a variable type too small to hold it. For example, if an integer variable can only store values up to 255, and a value of 256 is assigned to it, the variable will overflow and wrap around to 0. This can cause unexpected program behavior or lead to buffer overflow vulnerabilities if the overflowed value is used as an index or size for memory allocation1. Built-in functions from libraries can help avoid integer overflow by performing checks on the input values and the resulting values, and throwing exceptions or errors if they exceed the limits of the variable type2.

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

The syslog entries show the attempts of users to run commands with elevated permissions on two servers: webserver and financeserver. The entries include the date and time, the server name, the command used (su or sudo), the user name, and the outcome (success or failed). The policy of the organization states that users should always run commands under their own account, with temporary administrator privileges if necessary. This means that users should use sudo to run commands as another user (usually root), rather than su to switch to another user’s account. Therefore, the entry that should cause the analyst the most concern is D. <100> 2020-01-10T19:34…002z financeserver su 201 32001 = BOM ’ su vi success. This entry shows that someone used su to switch to another user’s account on the financeserver and successfully edited a file with vi. This could indicate an unauthorized access or a compromised account.

The email message that was quarantined and requires further review is an example of a phishing attempt that tries to trick the recipient into buying gift cards for a fake urgent request from a senior executive. The security analyst should delete the email and block the sender to prevent further attempts from reaching other users in the organization. Releasing the email for delivery, contacting a purchasing agent to expedite, or purchasing the gift cards and submitting an expense report are actions that would fall for the phishing attempt and result in financial loss or reputation damage for the organization. Reference: https://www.csoonline.com/article/3444488/what-is-phishing-how-this-cyber-attack-works-and-how-to-prevent-it.html

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.

Server-side input validation is a solution that can prevent cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities by checking and filtering any user input that is sent to the server before rendering it on a web page. Server-side input validation can help to ensure that the user input conforms to the expected format, length and type, and does not contain any malicious characters or syntax that may alter the logic or behavior of the web page. Server-side input validation can also reject or sanitize any input that does not meet the validation criteria .

Based on the output of the “netstat -an” command, it seems that the web server is listening on port 80 for HTTP traffic and port 443 for HTTPS traffic. The anomalous traffic from 9.9.9.9 is accessing the web server on port 443, which means it is using a secure connection.

The best method to accomplish the task of restricting improper traffic from 9.9.9.9 is D. Adjusting the firewall. A firewall is a device or software that controls the flow of network traffic based on predefined rules. By adjusting the firewall rules, you can block or allow specific IP addresses, ports, protocols, or domains from accessing your web server.

Checking the server logs to evaluate which emails were sent to is the first action the analyst should do to evaluate the potential impact of this security incident. Server logs are records of events or activities that occur on a server, such as email transactions, web requests, or authentication attempts. Checking the server logs can help to determine how many emails were sent to , when they were sent, who sent them, and what they contained. This can help to assess the scope and severity of the incident and plan further actions .

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.

SSO stands for Single Sign-On, and it is a technology that allows users to authenticate once and access multiple applications or systems without entering their credentials again. SSO can help streamline each employee’s authentication, by reducing the number of passwords they have to remember or enter, and improving their user experience and productivity.

The security analyst needs to investigate further the source IP address 10.50.180.49. This IP address belongs to a private network that is not routable on the internet. However, the firewall usage report shows that this IP address has sent traffic to an external destination on port 443 (HTTPS). This could indicate that the IP address is spoofed or compromised by an attacker who is using it to exfiltrate data or communicate with a command-and-control server.

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

Processing and exploitation is the step in the intelligence cycle that involves converting raw data into a format that can be used for analysis and producing intelligence products that can be disseminated to consumers. The security analyst is performing this step by correlating, ranking, and enriching raw data into a report. Analysis and production, dissemination and evaluation, data collection, and planning and direction are other steps in the intelligence cycle, but they do not match the description of the security analyst’s task. Reference: https://www.cia.gov/news-information/featured-story-archive/2010-featured-story-archive/intelligence-cycle.html

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

"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." https://www.plutora.com/blog/uat-user-acceptance-testing

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.

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

The best way to isolate and triage the host is to remove rules 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. These rules allow inbound and outbound traffic on ports 22 (SSH), 80 (HTTP), and 443 (HTTPS) from any source or destination. By removing these rules, the security analyst can block any network communication to or from the host, preventing any further data exfiltration or malware infection. This will also allow the security analyst to perform a forensic analysis on the host without any interference from external sources.

The packet capture shows that the host sent a Client Hello message to utoftor.com on port 443. This message is part of the TLS (Transport Layer Security) handshake protocol, which is used to establish a secure connection between a client and a server1. The Client Hello message contains information such as the supported TLS version, cipher suites, and extensions that the client can use for the secure connection. The server is expected to respond with a Server Hello message that selects the parameters for the secure connection. However, the packet capture does not show any response from the server, which means that the host only attempted to make a secure connection to utoftor.com, but did not succeed. The host did not download (B) or reject (D) any application from utoftor.com.

A Diamond Model analysis of an incident is a framework that identifies the four essential features of an attack: adversary, capability, infrastructure, and victim1 By analyzing these features and their relationships, a security analyst can gain insights into the attack’s objectives, methods, sources, and targets. A potential benefit of this activity is that it can identify detection and prevention capabilities to improve, such as gaps in security controls, indicators of compromise, or mitigation strategies2

References: 1 What is the Diamond Model of Intrusion Analysis? 2 How to use the MITRE ATT&CK® framework and diamond model of intrusion analysis together

Modbus is an industrial control system (ICS) network protocol that is used for communication between devices such as sensors, controllers, actuators, and monitors. Modbus has no inherent security functions on TCP port 502, which is the default port for Modbus TCP/IP communication. Modbus does not provide any encryption, authentication, or integrity protection for the data transmitted over the network, making it vulnerable to various attacks such as replay, modification, spoofing, or denial-of-service.

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.

Secure and thorough disposal can involve deleting or wiping all data from the hardware appliances, physically destroying or shredding them, or recycling them through certified vendors or programs. Compliance with company policies can help to ensure that the disposal follows the best practices and standards for data protection and environmental responsibility .

References: : https://www.bestbuy.com/site/services/recycling/pcmcat149900050025.c?id=pcmcat149900050025 : https://www.epa.gov/recycle/electronics-donation-and-recycling : https://www.techtarget.com/searchdatacenter/tip/A-6-step-guide-for-hardware-disposal

Kitten and Jackal are two APT (Advanced Persistent Threat) adversary archetypes that represent non-nation-state threat actors. APT adversary archetypes are categories of threat actors that share common characteristics, such as motivation, objectives, capabilities, or tactics. APT adversary archetypes can help security analysts understand and prioritize the threats they face2. Kitten is a term used to describe Iranian-based threat actors that are typically not backed by the Iranian government. They are motivated by ideological or religious beliefs and target political or regional adversaries3. Jackal is a term used to describe cybercriminal groups that operate as mercenaries or proxies for other threat actors. They are motivated by financial gain and target various sectors and regions.

An incident communications process is a set of procedures that defines how to communicate with internal and external stakeholders during and after an incident, such as customers, employees, management, regulators and media. An incident communications process can help to provide accurate, timely and consistent information about the incident, its impact and the actions taken to resolve it. An incident communications process can also help to maintain trust and reputation, comply with legal obligations and prevent misinformation or confusion3 .

CSRF tokens are random values that are generated by the server and included in requests that perform state-changing actions. They are used to prevent CSRF attacks by verifying that the request originates from a legitimate source. However, if the CSRF tokens are transmitted using cookies, they are vulnerable to being stolen or forged by an attacker who can exploit other vulnerabilities, such as cross-site scripting (XSS) or cookie injection. Therefore, a better option is to avoid the transmission of CSRF tokens using cookies and use other methods, such as hidden form fields or custom HTTP headers. References: CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) Certification Exam Objectives (CS0-002), page 11; https://owasp.org/www-community/attacks/csrf

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

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

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

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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.

What is that application for? "The DMZ is a special network zone designed to house systems that receive connections from the outside world, such as web and email servers. Sound firewall designs place these systems on an isolated network where, if they become compromised, they pose little threat to the internal network because connections between the DMZ and the internal network must still pass through the firewall and are subject to its security policy"

Creating a proper DMZ for outdated components and segregating the JBoss server is the best action to take first to prevent server compromise and business disruption at the same time. A DMZ (demilitarized zone) is a network segment that separates internal networks from external networks, such as the internet, and provides an additional layer of security3. Creating a proper DMZ for outdated components and segregating the JBoss server can isolate and protect the critical server from external attacks that may exploit its vulnerability.

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

The host “lincoln” violates the organizational policies that require dedicated user accounts to run programs that need elevated privileges. The log file shows that the user “ldavis” tried to run programs such as “su root”, “sudo apache.bin”, and “sudo grep” on the host “lincoln”, which indicate attempts to gain elevated privileges or access sensitive files. The other hosts do not show any evidence of policy violation.

A compensating control, also called an alternative control, is a mechanism that is put in place to satisfy the requirement for a security measure that is deemed too difficult or impractical to implement at the present time.

"Compensating controls are additional security measures that you take to address a vulnerability without remediating the underlying issue."

A compensating control is a control that reduces the risk of an existing or potential control weakness2 In this case, the lack of segregation of duties in the accounting department is a control weakness that increases the risk of fraud or error. The quarterly reviews by a different officer are a compensating control that reduces this risk by providing an independent verification of the transactions recorded by the controller.

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: https://owasp.org/www-community/attacks/SQL_Injection

Nessus is a tool that would produce the assessment output needed to satisfy the request. Nessus is a vulnerability scanner that can scan a network or a system for known vulnerabilities and generate reports based on the findings. Nessus can also compare the vulnerabilities it finds with the Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) database, which is a standardized list of publicly known security vulnerabilities and exposures2. Nessus can help identify hosts that have critical and high-severity findings as referenced in the CVE database.

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

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

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

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

This would limit the FTP server’s access to a specific directory tree and prevent directory traversal attacks that could access files outside of that tree. Implementing file-level encryption, supporting FTPS, or upgrading the FTP server would not prevent directory traversal attacks.

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.

The correct answer is B. Extract the server’s system timeline, verifying hashes and network connections during a certain time frame. A system timeline is a chronological record of the events and activities that occurred on a system, such as file creation, modification, or deletion, process execution, registry changes, or network connections. A system timeline can help an analyst to understand how an attacker compromised a server by showing the sequence of actions and artifacts left by the attacker. An analyst can also verify the hashes of the files and processes involved in the compromise and compare them with known malware signatures or databases. Additionally, an analyst can check the network connections made by the server during the compromise and identify the source and destination IP addresses, ports, and protocols used by the attacker1.

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: https://www.cloudflare.com/learning/bots/what-is-credential-stuffing/

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.

 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.

Supervised and unsupervised machine-learning algorithms are two types of machine-learning methods that are used in cybersecurity applications. Machine learning is a branch of artificial intelligence that enables systems to learn from data and improve their performance without explicit programming.

Supervised machine-learning algorithms are trained on labeled data, which means that each data point has a known outcome or class. Supervised algorithms learn to map input data to output data by finding patterns or rules from the training data. Supervised algorithms require security analyst feedback to provide labels for the data and evaluate the accuracy of the algorithm’s predictions. Examples of supervised machine-learning algorithms are classification and regression.

Unsupervised machine-learning algorithms are trained on unlabeled data, which means that each data point has no known outcome or class. Unsupervised algorithms learn to discover hidden structures or patterns from the data without any guidance or feedback. Unsupervised algorithms do not require security analyst feedback, as they do not rely on predefined labels or outcomes. Examples of unsupervised machine-learning algorithms are clustering and anomaly detection.

Automating the use of a hashing algorithm after verified users make changes to their data is an appropriate course of action to verify that a user’s data is not altered without the user’s consent. 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 by comparing the hash values of the original and modified data. If the hash values match, then the data has not been altered without the user’s consent. If the hash values differ, then the data may have been tampered with or corrupted .

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.

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: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/31686/resource-exhaustion  3: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/13493/penetration-testing  4: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/25888/security-development-lifecycle-sdl : https://www.techopedia.com/definition/24771/technical-controls : https://www.techopedia.com/definition/32088/vm-escape

Encapsulated traffic may evade security monitoring and defenses by hiding or obfuscating the actual content or source of the traffic. Encapsulation is a technique that wraps data packets with additional headers or protocols to enable communication across different network types or layers. Encapsulation can be used for legitimate purposes, such as tunneling, VPNs, or NAT, but it can also be used by attackers to bypass security controls or detection mechanisms that are not able to inspect or analyze the encapsulated traffic .

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.

/bin/ls -1 /proc/1301/exe is the command that will show the absolute path to the executed binary file associated with the process ID 1301, which is ./usr/sbin/sshd. This information can help the security analyst determine if the binary is an official version and has not been modified, which could be an indicator of a compromise. /proc/1301/exe is a special symbolic link that points to the executable file that was used to start the process 1301 .

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: https://www.sans.org/reading-room/whitepapers/incident/incident-handlers-handbook-33901

Data enrichment is a process that adds event and non-event contextual information to security event data in order to transform raw data into meaningful insights123. Geolocation is one example of contextual information that can be used to enrich security event data, such as IP addresses, and provide more information about the physical locations of threat actors. Data enrichment can help security analysts perform threat detection, threat hunting, and incident response more effectively and efficiently.

The analyst should obtain permission to perform the search before accessing the web-browsing history of an employee, as this may involve privacy or legal issues. The analyst should follow the organization’s policies and procedures, and obtain authorization from the appropriate authority, such as the manager, the human resources department, or the legal department.

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: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/2586/retinal-scan

UEBA stands for User and Entity Behavior Analytics, which is a category of security products that use machine learning and statistical analysis to identify malicious actions by users or entities on a network. UEBA products can detect anomalous or suspicious behaviors that deviate from normal patterns or baselines, such as data exfiltration, privilege escalation, unauthorized access, insider threats, or compromised accounts. UEBA products can also provide alerts, reports, or recommendations for response actions based on the detected behaviors.

 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.

A firewall is a device or software that controls the incoming and outgoing network traffic based on predefined rules. Creating a firewall rule to block the IP address that is scanning the organization’s environment is an effective way to stop this activity and prevent potential attacks. Creating an IPS rule to block the subnet, sinkholing the IP address, or closing all unnecessary open ports are other possible actions, but they are not as specific or efficient as creating a firewall rule to block the IP address. Reference: https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/solutions/small-business/resource-center/security/firewall.html

DLP, or Data Loss Prevention, is a cybersecurity solution that detects and prevents data breaches. It blocks the extraction of sensitive data and prevents the unauthorized or inappropriate sharing, transfer, or use of data. It also helps organizations comply with data protection regulations and policies1 DLP can help defend against sensitive data exfiltration by monitoring and controlling data movement across networks, devices, applications, and cloud services. DLP can also alert or block users from sending or uploading sensitive data to untrusted destinations or recipients.

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

Memory cache and swap volume are types of media that are most volatile and should be preserved during a digital forensics investigation. Volatile media are those that store data temporarily and lose their contents when the power is turned off or interrupted. Memory cache is a small and fast memory that stores frequently used data or instructions for faster access by the processor. Swap volume is a part of the hard disk that is used as an extension of the memory when the memory is full or low .

A virtualized system is a system that runs on a software layer called a hypervisor that emulates the hardware resources of a physical machine. A virtualized system can have its own operating system, applications, and data that are isolated from other virtualized systems or the host machine3 A virtualized system can be a solution for a small organization that has proprietary software that is used internally but cannot be updated with the rest of the environment. By virtualizing the system and decommissioning the physical machine, the organization can achieve several benefits, such as:

• Reducing hardware costs and maintenance
• Improving performance and scalability
• Enhancing security and compliance
• Simplifying backup and recovery
• Enabling portability and compatibility

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; https://www.csoonline.com/article/3235970/what-is-spoofing-definition-and-how-to-prevent-it.html

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.

Credential vaulting is a solution that would best satisfy the organization’s goal of implementing a privileged access management solution. Credential vaulting is a technique that securely stores and manages the credentials of privileged accounts, such as emergency and service accounts. Credential vaulting can help prevent unauthorized or accidental use of privileged accounts by enforcing strict access policies, such as requiring approval, authentication, or auditing for each access request. Credential vaulting can also help rotate or expire the passwords of privileged accounts to reduce the risk of compromise3.

EDR stands for endpoint detection and response, which is a type of security solution that monitors and protects all devices that are connected to a network, such as laptops and mobile phones. EDR can help to ensure that all devices are patched and running some sort of protection against malicious software by providing continuous visibility, threat detection, incident response, and remediation capabilities. EDR can also help to enforce security policies and compliance requirements across all devices .

This command would most likely indicate if the email attachment is malicious, as it would display any JavaScript code embedded in the PDF file. JavaScript code can be used by attackers to execute malicious commands or scripts on the victim’s system when the PDF file is opened1. The strings command extracts the printable characters from a binary file, such as a PDF file, and the grep -i “

Requests identified by a threat intelligence service with a bad reputation are likely to be malicious or suspicious, as they originate from sources that are known to be involved in cyberattacks or other malicious activities. These requests may indicate that an attacker is trying to exploit a vulnerability or perform reconnaissance on the web server.

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

Nessus is a vulnerability scanning and assessment tool that can be used to scan systems for potential vulnerabilities and weaknesses. It provides detailed reports on any critical and high-severity findings as referenced in the CVE database, making it the ideal tool for fulfilling the Chief Information Security Officer's request. Nikto, fuzzer, wireshark, and prowler are all security tools, but they are not applicable for the scenario described in the question. Here is a link to an article from CompTIA's website about Nessus for your reference: https://www.comptia.org/content/nessus-vulnerability-scanning-and-assessment-tool.

Validating user input before execution and interpretation can help to prevent dynamic code evaluation script injection vulnerabilities by checking and filtering any malicious input from the user that may contain code or commands. Dynamic code evaluation script injection is a type of vulnerability that occurs when an application accepts user input and executes or interprets it as part of its own code without proper validation or sanitization. This can allow an attacker to inject arbitrary code or commands into the application and execute them with the same privileges as the application . Validating user input before execution and interpretation can help to ensure that the input conforms to the expected format, length and type, and does not contain any malicious characters or syntax that may alter the logic or behavior of the application .

The strings command is a Linux utility that can extract human-readable content from any file or partition3. It can be used to analyze a Linux swap partition by finding text strings that may indicate malicious activity or compromise4. The head command (B) can only display the first few lines of a file or partition, which may not contain any useful information. The fsstat command © can only display file system statistics such as size, type, and layout, which may not reveal any human-readable content. The dd command (D) can only copy or convert a file or partition, which may not extract any human-readable content.

References: 3: https://linux.die.net/man/1/strings  4: https://www.linuxjournal.com/content/using-strings-command

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.

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

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

Regression testing is a type of software testing that ensures that a recent program or code change has not adversely affected existing features123 Regression testing is useful for checking if previously patched vulnerabilities have not been reintroduced by the new update.

Stress testing is a type of software testing that evaluates the performance and reliability of a system under extreme conditions, such as high load, limited resources, or concurrent users. Stress testing is not directly related to checking for vulnerabilities.

Code review is a process of examining the source code of a software program to find and fix errors, improve quality, and ensure compliance with standards and best practices. Code review can help prevent vulnerabilities from being introduced in the first place, but it does not verify that existing features are working as expected after a code change.

Peer review is a process of evaluating the work of another person or group of people, such as a research paper, a report, or a design. Peer review can provide feedback and suggestions for improvement, but it does not test the functionality or security of a software product.

 IPS and SIEM are technologies that can help secure sensitive data on critical networks by implementing controls to mitigate APTs. IPS stands for Intrusion Prevention System, and it is a device or software that monitors network traffic and blocks or prevents malicious packets or activities based on predefined rules or signatures. IPS can help detect and stop APTs that may try to exploit vulnerabilities or bypass security controls on critical networks. SIEM stands for Security Information and Event Management, and it is a system that collects, correlates, analyzes, and reports security data from various sources, such as logs, alerts, events, etc. SIEM can help identify and respond to APTs that may exhibit anomalous or suspicious behavior patterns on critical networks.

This control would best help to reduce the number of software vulnerabilities introduced by this situation because it ensures that code quality and security standards are met before deploying to production. Senior-level developers can provide feedback, guidance, and corrections to junior-level developers and catch any errors or flaws in their code.

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

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

"Technical controls enforce confidentiality, integrity, and availability in the digital space. Examples of technical security controls include firewall rules, access control lists, intrusion prevention systems, and encryption."

A technical control is a type of control that uses technology or software to protect data and systems from unauthorized access or misuse3. A technical control can include encryption, authentication, firewalls, antivirus software, and other mechanisms that rely on hardware or software. Placing an ACL (access control list) on a file folder is an example of a technical control. An ACL is a list of permissions that specifies who can access or modify a file or folder4. An ACL can help to enforce confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data by restricting access to authorized users only.

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

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

The cipher suite in this line is weak because:

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

The correct answer is D. Honeypot. A honeypot is a security mechanism designed to detect and deflect attempts at unauthorized use of information systems. In this case, the analyst has set up a system to listen on a network port that is commonly used for email traffic. The purpose of this honeypot is to attract attackers and allow the security analyst to observe their behavior and tactics. By monitoring the traffic that is captured in the caplog.txt file, the analyst can identify attacks that were not blocked by the organization’s firewalls1.

A. Log correlation is not correct. Log correlation is a process of analyzing and correlating data from multiple sources, such as firewalls, servers, applications, or devices, to identify patterns, trends, or anomalies. Log correlation can help to improve security visibility, detection, and response, but it does not describe the solution that the analyst implemented.

B. Crontab mail script is not correct. Crontab is a tool that allows users to schedule commands or scripts to run at specified times or intervals on a Linux system. A mail script is a script that can send or receive email messages using a mail server. A crontab mail script could be used to automate email tasks, such as sending reports or alerts, but it does not describe the solution that the analyst implemented.

C. Sinkhole is not correct. A sinkhole is a technique that redirects malicious or unwanted traffic to a controlled destination, such as a fake or isolated server. A sinkhole can help to prevent or mitigate the impact of attacks, such as botnets, malware, or phishing, by blocking or capturing the traffic. However, a sinkhole does not describe the solution that the analyst implemented.

1: CompTIA CySA+ Exam: Implementing a Firewall Analysis Solution

The software development life cycle (SDLC) is a process that consists of several phases that guide the development of software applications or systems. Security should be involved in every phase of the SDLC, but especially in the planning phase, which is the first phase where the scope, objectives, requirements, and resources of the project are defined. By involving security in the planning phase, potential risks and threats can be identified and mitigated early in the process, which can save time, money, and effort later on. Design, maintenance, implementation, analysis, and testing are other phases of the SDLC, but they are not the first phase where security should be involved. Reference: https://www.bmc.com/blogs/software-development-life-cycle-phases/

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

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

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

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

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

A service level agreement (SLA) and a contract are documents that define the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved in a public cloud relationship. Logging and monitoring are important security activities that should be clearly specified in the SLA and contract, such as who will perform them, what data will be collected, how long will it be stored, and how will it be accessed or shared. Logging and monitoring are still needed in a public cloud environment, but they are not done solely by the data owners or the service provider. Reference: https://www.csoonline.com/article/2121595/what-to-look-for-in-a-cloud-security-sla.html

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

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; https://www.zaproxy.org/docs/desktop/start/features/spider/

Sinkholing is a technique for manipulating data flow in a network; you redirect traffic from its intended destination to a server of your choosing. It can be used maliciously, to steer legitimate traffic away from its intended recipient, but security professionals more commonly use sinkholing as a tool for research and reacting to attacks1.

For example, sinkholing can be used to redirect traffic from a botnet or a malware-infected host to a server under the control of the defender, where the traffic can be analyzed, blocked, or neutralized. This can help identify and isolate compromised devices, prevent command-and-control communication, and disrupt malicious activities2.

The other options are not the best solutions for the following reasons:

• Blocklisting is a technique for preventing access to or communication with certain IP addresses, domains, or applications that are known or suspected to be malicious. Blocklisting can be implemented using firewalls, routers, proxies, or software tools. Blocklisting can protect a network from unwanted or harmful traffic, but it does not redirect the traffic to a different destination.
• Geoblocking is a technique for restricting access to or communication with certain IP addresses, domains, or applications based on their geographic location. Geoblocking can be implemented using firewalls, routers, proxies, or software tools. Geoblocking can protect a network from unauthorized or undesirable traffic from specific regions or countries, but it does not redirect the traffic to a different destination.
• Sandboxing is a technique for isolating and executing potentially malicious code or applications in a separate and secure environment. Sandboxing can be implemented using virtual machines, containers, or software tools. Sandboxing can protect a network from malware infection or damage, but it does not redirect the network traffic to a different destination.

Potential data loss to external users is a threat that applies to this situation, where the accounting department is hosting an accounts receivable form on a public document service. Anyone with the link can access it. Data loss is an event that results in the destruction, corruption, or unauthorized disclosure of sensitive or confidential data. Data loss can occur due to various reasons, such as human error, hardware failure, malware infection, or cyberattack. In this case, hosting an accounts receivable form on a public document service exposes the data to potential data loss to external users who may access it without authorization or maliciously modify or delete it .

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: : https://www.techopedia.com/definition/33297/threat-hunting : https://www.techopedia.com/definition/4160/web-application-security-scanner-was : https://www.techopedia.com/definition/32694/red-teaming : https://www.techopedia.com/definition/13493/penetration-testing