Security +

Question 1

Which type of attack involves intercepting and modifying communications between two parties without their knowledge?

Answer 1

Man-in-the-Middle

Question 2

What is a zero-day exploit?

Answer 2

An exploit used before a vulnerability is publicly known

Question 3

What type of malware encrypts a victim’s files and demands payment for decryption?

Answer 3

Ransomware

Question 4

What is the primary purpose of a SIEM solution?

Answer 4

To aggregate and analyze log data

Question 5

Which of the following tools can be used to scan a network for open ports and vulnerabilities?

Answer 5

Nessus

Question 6

Which type of device acts as a buffer to prevent unauthorized traffic from reaching the internal network?

Answer 6

Firewall

Question 7

What is the principle of ‘least privilege’?

Answer 7

Users should only have the minimum access necessary to perform their duties.

Question 8

Which of the following is a best practice for securing cloud environments?

Answer 8

Encrypting sensitive data in transit and at rest

Question 9

Which protocol is commonly used to secure communication between a web server and a client?

Answer 9

HTTPS

Question 10

What is the difference between authentication and authorization?

Answer 10

Authentication verifies identity; authorization determines access levels.

Question 11

Which of the following is an example of multifactor authentication?

Answer 11

Smart card and PIN

Question 12

What is a role-based access control (RBAC) system?

Answer 12

Users are assigned permissions based on their roles within an organization.

Question 13

What is the first step in the risk management process?

Answer 13

Risk identification

Question 14

Which of the following is an example of a compensating control?

Answer 14

Requiring a secondary approval process for transactions

Question 15

What is the difference between a quantitative and qualitative risk assessment?

Answer 15

Quantitative measures impact in numerical terms; qualitative uses subjective ratings.

Question 16

What is phishing?

Answer 16

A social engineering attack to trick users into revealing sensitive information.

Question 17

What is the primary purpose of a denial-of-service (DoS) attack?

Answer 17

To disrupt the availability of a system or network.

Question 18

What does an SQL injection attack exploit?

Answer 18

A vulnerability in database queries to execute malicious SQL statements.

Question 19

What is a botnet?

Answer 19

A network of compromised devices controlled by an attacker.

Question 20

What is tailgating?

Answer 20

An attacker following an authorized person into a secured area without authorization.

Question 21

What is the primary function of a VPN?

Answer 21

To create a secure, encrypted connection over an untrusted network.

Question 22

Which protocol does SSH replace for secure remote access?

Answer 22

Telnet

Question 23

What does a honeypot do?

Answer 23

Attracts attackers to monitor their behavior and gather intelligence.

Question 24

What is the purpose of a vulnerability scanner?

Answer 24

To identify and report security vulnerabilities in systems and networks.

Question 25

What is the difference between a black-box and white-box penetration test?

Answer 25

Black-box tests have no prior knowledge of the system; white-box tests have full knowledge.

Question 26

What is the purpose of network segmentation?

Answer 26

To limit access and reduce the potential spread of attacks.

Question 27

What is a DMZ in network security?

Answer 27

A demilitarized zone that separates internal networks from external networks.

Question 28

What is the function of load balancers in a network?

Answer 28

To distribute traffic evenly across multiple servers.

Question 29

What is the main advantage of using Infrastructure as Code (IaC)?

Answer 29

Automated, consistent configuration management of systems.

Question 30

What is the difference between symmetric and asymmetric encryption?

Answer 30

Symmetric uses one key for encryption and decryption; asymmetric uses a key pair.

Question 31

What is single sign-on (SSO)?

Answer 31

A system that allows users to log in once and access multiple applications.

Question 32

What is the purpose of a password policy?

Answer 32

To enforce secure and consistent password management practices.

Question 33

What is two-factor authentication (2FA)?

Answer 33

An authentication process requiring two forms of verification.

Question 34

What is privilege escalation?

Answer 34

Gaining unauthorized access to higher-level privileges within a system.

Question 35

What is the purpose of a federated identity system?

Answer 35

To enable a single identity across multiple organizations or systems.

Question 36

What is risk mitigation?

Answer 36

The process of reducing the impact or likelihood of a risk.

Question 37

What is the purpose of an incident response plan?

Answer 37

To provide a structured approach to handling security incidents.

Question 38

What is the primary goal of business continuity planning?

Answer 38

To ensure critical operations continue during a disruption.

Question 39

What is an acceptable use policy (AUP)?

Answer 39

A document outlining the rules for using an organization's resources.

Question 40

What is the difference between residual and inherent risk?

Answer 40

Residual is the remaining risk after controls; inherent is the risk before controls.

Question 41

What is the purpose of a digital signature?

Answer 41

To provide integrity, authentication, and non-repudiation for digital messages.

Question 42

What is the function of a certificate authority (CA)?

Answer 42

To issue and manage digital certificates.

Question 43

What is hashing?

Answer 43

A one-way function that generates a fixed-size output from input data.

Question 44

What is Perfect Forward Secrecy (PFS)?

Answer 44

A feature that ensures session keys are not compromised even if the private key is.

Question 45

What does a public key infrastructure (PKI) enable?

Answer 45

Secure communication using certificates and encryption.

Question 46

What is a rootkit?

Answer 46

Malware that hides its presence to maintain privileged access to a system.

Question 47

What is spear phishing?

Answer 47

A targeted phishing attack aimed at a specific individual or organization.

Question 48

What does a logic bomb do?

Answer 48

Triggers a malicious action when specific conditions are met.

Question 49

What is cross-site scripting (XSS)?

Answer 49

An attack that injects malicious scripts into trusted websites.

Question 50

What is the primary goal of social engineering attacks?

Answer 50

To manipulate individuals into divulging confidential information.

Question 51

What does IDS stand for?

Answer 51

Intrusion Detection System.

Question 52

What is the primary purpose of a proxy server?

Answer 52

To act as an intermediary between users and the internet.

Question 53

What is Wireshark primarily used for?

Answer 53

Capturing and analyzing network traffic.

Question 54

What is the purpose of patch management?

Answer 54

To update systems and fix security vulnerabilities.

Question 55

What is the function of a sandbox in cybersecurity?

Answer 55

To isolate and analyze potentially malicious files or software.

Question 56

What is the purpose of endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions?

Answer 56

To monitor and respond to threats on endpoint devices.

Question 57

What is geofencing?

Answer 57

Restricting access based on geographic location.

Question 58

What is the purpose of a security baseline?

Answer 58

To establish a minimum standard for system security.

Question 59

What is micro-segmentation?

Answer 59

Dividing a network into smaller, secure segments.

Question 60

What is the main benefit of using virtualization?

Answer 60

Efficient use of resources and isolation of environments.

Question 61

What is Kerberos used for?

Answer 61

A protocol for secure authentication in a network.

Question 62

What is a biometric factor in authentication?

Answer 62

A physical characteristic, such as a fingerprint or retinal scan.

Question 63

What is an access control list (ACL)?

Answer 63

A list of permissions defining access to resources.

Question 64

What is a token in IAM?

Answer 64

A physical or digital object used to prove identity or access rights.

Question 65

What is the primary function of LDAP?

Answer 65

To manage and access directory information services.

Question 66

What is the purpose of a risk register?

Answer 66

To document and track identified risks and their management.

Question 67

What is the difference between qualitative and quantitative risk analysis?

Answer 67

Qualitative is subjective; quantitative uses numerical data.

Question 68

What is a disaster recovery plan (DRP)?

Answer 68

A plan to restore systems and data after a major disruption.

Question 69

What is residual risk?

Answer 69

The risk remaining after controls have been applied.

Question 70

What is the purpose of a tabletop exercise?

Answer 70

To simulate a security incident for training purposes.

Question 71

What is the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)?

Answer 71

A widely used symmetric encryption algorithm.

Question 72

What is a cryptographic key?

Answer 72

A value used to encrypt and decrypt data.

Question 73

What is a nonce?

Answer 73

A random or unique value used in cryptographic operations to prevent replay attacks.

Question 74

What is steganography?

Answer 74

Hiding information within other non-secret data, like images or audio files.

Question 75

What is the purpose of Transport Layer Security (TLS)?

Answer 75

To encrypt communication between a client and server.