CompTIA Security+ Question K-70

Which of the following is a requirement when implementing PKI if data loss is unacceptable?

A. Web of trust
B. Non-repudiation
C. Key escrow
D. Certificate revocation list

Answer: C

Explanation:
Key escrow is a database of stored keys that later can be retrieved. Key escrow addresses the possibility that a third party may need to access keys. Under the conditions of key escrow, the keys needed to encrypt/decrypt data are held in an escrow account (think of the term as it relates to home mortgages) and made available if that third party requests them. The third party in question is generally the government, but it could also be an employer if an employee’s private messages have been called into question.

CompTIA Security+ Question K-69

Which of the following is BEST utilized to identify common misconfigurations throughout the enterprise?

A. Vulnerability scanning
B. Port scanning
C. Penetration testing
D. Black box

Answer: A

Explanation:
A vulnerability scan is the process of scanning the network and/or I.T. infrastructure for threats and vulnerabilities. The threats and vulnerabilities are then evaluated in a risk assessment and the necessary actions taken to resolve and vulnerabilities. A vulnerability scan scans for known weaknesses such as missing patches or security updates.

A vulnerability scan is the automated process of proactively identifying security vulnerabilities of computing systems in a network in order to determine if and where a system can be exploited and/or threatened. While public servers are important for communication and data transfer over the Internet, they open the door to potential security breaches by threat agents, such as malicious hackers. Vulnerability scanning employs software that seeks out security flaws based on a database of known flaws, testing systems for the occurrence of these flaws and generating a report of the findings that an individual or an enterprise can use to tighten the network’s security.

CompTIA Security+ Question K-68

A Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) wants to implement two-factor authentication within the company. Which of the following would fulfill the CISO’s requirements?

A. Username and password
B. Retina scan and fingerprint scan
C. USB token and PIN
D. Proximity badge and token

Answer: C

Explanation:
Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is a method of computer access control which a user can pass by successfully presenting authentication factors from at least two of the three categories: knowledge factors (“things only the user knows”), such as passwords possession factors (“things only the user has”), such as ATM cards inherence factors (“things only the user is”), such as biometrics

In this question, a USB token is a possession factor (something the user has) and a PIN is a knowledge factor (something the user knows).

CompTIA Security+ Question K-67

Which of the following is an important implementation consideration when deploying a wireless network that uses a shared password?

A. Authentication server
B. Server certificate
C. Key length
D. EAP method

Answer: C

Explanation:
Key length is the main issue of concern since the wireless network uses a shared password. With risks of shared passwords makes the length of the password a crucial factor to risk mitigation.

CompTIA Security+ Question K-66

Which of the following is an authentication and accounting service that uses TCP for connecting to routers and switches?

A. DIAMETER
B. RADIUS
C. TACACS+
D. Kerberos

Answer: C

Explanation:
TACACS+ is an authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) service that makes us of TCP only.

CompTIA Security+ Question K-64

Which of the following allows an organization to store a sensitive PKI component with a trusted third party?

A. Trust model
B. Public Key Infrastructure
C. Private key
D. Key escrow

Answer: D

Explanation:
Sensitive PKI data, such as private keys, can be put into key escrow data. The key escrow data can be kept at a trusted third party. Key escrow is an arrangement in which the keys needed to decrypt encrypted data are held in escrow so that, under certain circumstances, an authorized third party may gain access to those keys. These third parties may include businesses, who may want access to employees’ private communications, or governments, who may wish to be able to view the contents of encrypted communications.

CompTIA Security+ Question K-63

Which of the following could cause a browser to display the message below?
“The security certificate presented by this website was issued for a different website’s address.”

A. The website certificate was issued by a different CA than what the browser recognizes in its trusted CAs.
B. The website is using a wildcard certificate issued for the company’s domain.
C. HTTPS://127.0.01 was used instead of HTTPS://localhost.
D. The website is using an expired self signed certificate.

Answer: C

Explanation:
PKI is a two-key, asymmetric system with four main components: certificate authority (CA), registration authority (RA), RSA (the encryption algorithm), and digital certificates. In typical public key infrastructure (PKI) arrangements, a digital signature from a certificate authority (CA) attests that a particular public key certificate is valid (i.e., contains correct information). Users, or their software on their behalf, check that the private key used to sign some certificate matches the public key in the CA’s certificate. Since CA certificates are often signed by other, “higher-ranking,” CAs, there must necessarily be a highest CA, which provides the ultimate in attestation authority in that particular PKI scheme. Localhost is a hostname that means this computer and may be used to access the computer’s own network services via its loopback network interface. Using the loopback interface bypasses local network interface hardware. In this case the HTTPS://127.0.01 was used and not HTTPS//localhost

CompTIA Security+ Question K-62

Employee badges are encoded with a private encryption key and specific personal information.
The encoding is then used to provide access to the network. Which of the following describes this access control type?

A. Smartcard
B. Token
C. Discretionary access control
D. Mandatory access control

Answer: A

Explanation:
Smart cards are credit-card-sized IDs, badges, or security passes with an embedded integrated circuit chip that can include data regarding the authorized bearer. This data can then be used for identification and/or authentication purposes.

CompTIA Security+ Question K-61

An auditor is given access to a conference room to conduct an analysis. When they connect their laptop’s Ethernet cable into the wall jack, they are not able to get a connection to the Internet but have a link light. Which of the following is MOST likely causing this issue?

A. Ethernet cable is damaged
B. The host firewall is set to disallow outbound connections
C. Network Access Control
D. The switch port is administratively shutdown

Answer: C

Explanation:
Network Access Control (NAC) means controlling access to an environment through strict adherence to and implementation of security policies. The goals of NAC are to prevent/reduce zero-day attacks, enforce security policy throughout the network, and use identities to perform access control.