CompTIA Security+ Question H-49

A security administrator is tackling issues related to authenticating users at a remote site. There have been a large number of security incidents that resulted from either tailgating or impersonation of authorized users with valid credentials. The security administrator has been told to implement multifactor authentication in order to control facility access. To secure access to the remote facility, which of the following could be implemented without increasing the amount of space required at the entrance?

A. MOTD challenge and PIN pad
B. Retina scanner and fingerprint reader
C. Voice recognition and one-time PIN token
D. One-time PIN token and proximity reader

Answer: C

Explanation:
Authentication systems or methods are based on one or more of these five factors: Something you know, such as a password or PIN Something you have, such as a smart card, token, or identification device Something you are, such as your fingerprints or retinal pattern (often called biometrics) Something you do, such as an action you must take to complete authentication Somewhere you are (this is based on geolocation)

Multifactor authentication is authentication that uses two of more of the authentication factors listed above.

In this question, we can use voice recognition (something you are) and a one-time PIN token (something you have) to provide two factors of authentication. The one-time PIN token is a small device that generates a one-time PIN to enable access.

CompTIA Security+ Question H-18

Which of the following can be used by a security administrator to successfully recover a user’s forgotten password on a password protected file?

A. Cognitive password
B. Password sniffing
C. Brute force
D. Social engineering

Answer: C

Explanation:
One way to recover a user’s forgotten password on a password protected file is to guess it. A brute force attack is an automated attempt to open the file by using many different passwords.

A brute force attack is a trial-and-error method used to obtain information such as a user password or personal identification number (PIN). In a brute force attack, automated software is used to generate a large number of consecutive guesses as to the value of the desired data. Brute force attacks may be used by criminals to crack encrypted data, or by security analysts to test an organization’s network security. A brute force attack may also be referred to as brute force cracking. For example, a form of brute force attack known as a dictionary attack might try all the words in a dictionary. Other forms of brute force attack might try commonly-used passwords or combinations of letters and numbers. An attack of this nature can be time- and resource-consuming. Hence the name “brute force attack;” success is usually based on computing power and the number of combinations tried rather than an ingenious algorithm.

CompTIA Security+ Question G-75

A network administrator uses an RFID card to enter the datacenter, a key to open the server rack, and a username and password to logon to a server. These are examples of which of the following?

A. Multifactor authentication
B. Single factor authentication
C. Separation of duties
D. Identification

Answer: B

Explanation:
Single-factor authentication (SFA) is a process for securing access to a given system by identifying the party requesting access via a single category of credentials. In this case, the network administrator makes use of an RFID card to access the datacenter, a key to access the server rack, and a username and password to access a server.

CompTIA Security+ Question G-57

A security administrator is aware that a portion of the company’s Internet-facing network tends to be non-secure due to poorly configured and patched systems. The business owner has accepted the risk of those systems being compromised, but the administrator wants to determine the degree to which those systems can be used to gain access to the company intranet. Which of the following should the administrator perform?

A. Patch management assessment
B. Business impact assessment
C. Penetration test
D. Vulnerability assessment

Answer: C

Explanation:
Penetration testing is the most intrusive type of testing because you are actively trying to circumvent the system’s security controls to gain access to the system. It is also used to determine the degree to which the systems can be used to gain access to the company intranet (the degree of access to local network resources). Penetration testing (also called pen testing) is the practice of testing a computer system, network or Web application to find vulnerabilities that an attacker could exploit. Pen tests can be automated with software applications or they can be performed manually. Either way, the process includes gathering information about the target before the test (reconnaissance), identifying possible entry points, attempting to break in (either virtually or for real) and reporting back the findings. The main objective of penetration testing is to determine security weaknesses. A pen test can also be used to test an organization’s security policy compliance, its employees’ security awareness and the organization’s ability to identify and respond to security incidents. Penetration tests are sometimes called white hat attacks because in a pen test, the good guys are attempting to break in.

Pen test strategies include:

Targeted testing Targeted testing is performed by the organization’s IT team and the penetration testing team working together. It’s sometimes referred to as a “lights-turned-on” approach because everyone can see the test being carried out.

External testing This type of pen test targets a company’s externally visible servers or devices including domain name servers (DNS), e-mail servers, Web servers or firewalls. The objective is to find out if an outside attacker can get in and how far they can get in once they’ve gained access.

Internal testing This test mimics an inside attack behind the firewall by an authorized user with standard access privileges. This kind of test is useful for estimating how much damage a disgruntled employee could cause.

Blind testing A blind test strategy simulates the actions and procedures of a real attacker by severely limiting the information given to the person or team that’s performing the test beforehand. Typically, they may only be given the name of the company. Because this type of test can require a considerable amount of time for reconnaissance, it can be expensive.

Double blind testing Double blind testing takes the blind test and carries it a step further. In this type of pen test, only one or two people within the organization might be aware a test is being conducted. Double-blind tests can be useful for testing an organization’s security monitoring and incident identification as well as its response procedures.

CompTIA Security+ Question G-45

Which of the following is an important step in the initial stages of deploying a host-based firewall?

A. Selecting identification versus authentication
B. Determining the list of exceptions
C. Choosing an encryption algorithm
D. Setting time of day restrictions

Answer: B

Explanation:
A host-based firewall is installed on a client system and is used to protect the client system from the activities of the user as well as from communication from the network or Internet. These firewalls manage network traffic using filters to block certain ports and protocols while allowing others to pass through the system.

CompTIA Security+ Question F-84

A computer security officer has investigated a possible data breach and has found it credible. The officer notifies the data center manager and the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO). This is an example of:

A. escalation and notification.
B. first responder.
C. incident identification.
D. incident mitigation.

Answer: A

Explanation:
Escalation and notification is a response strategy that outlines a staged procedure of escalation and notification that is to be followed in the event of a security incident. Only those in specific positions of authority or responsibility must receive notification of the security breach.

CompTIA Security+ Question F-65

A datacenter requires that staff be able to identify whether or not items have been removed from the facility. Which of the following controls will allow the organization to provide automated notification of item removal?

A. CCTV
B. Environmental monitoring
C. RFID
D. EMI shielding

Answer: C

Explanation:
RFID is radio frequency identification that works with readers that work with 13.56 MHz smart cards and 125 kHz proximity cards and can open turnstiles, gates, and any other physical security safeguards once the signal is read. Fitting out the equipment with RFID will allow you to provide automated notification of item removal in the event of any of the equipped items is taken off the premises.

CompTIA Security+ Question F-22

Users have been reporting that their wireless access point is not functioning. They state that it allows slow connections to the internet, but does not provide access to the internal network. The user provides the SSID and the technician logs into the company’s access point and finds no issues. Which of the following should the technician do?

A. Change the access point from WPA2 to WEP to determine if the encryption is too strong
B. Clear all access logs from the AP to provide an up-to-date access list of connected users
C. Check the MAC address of the AP to which the users are connecting to determine if it is an imposter
D. Reconfigure the access point so that it is blocking all inbound and outbound traffic as a troubleshooting gap

Answer: C

Explanation:
The users may be connecting to a rogue access point. The rogue access point could be hosting a wireless network that has the same SSID as the corporate wireless network. The only way to tell for sure if the access point the users are connecting to is the correct one is to check the MAC address. Every network card has a unique 48-bit address assigned. A media access control address (MAC address) is a unique identifier assigned to network interfaces for communications on the physical network segment. MAC addresses are used as a network address for most IEEE 802 network technologies, including Ethernet and WiFi. Logically, MAC addresses are used in the media access control protocol sublayer of the OSI reference model. MAC addresses are most often assigned by the manufacturer of a network interface controller (NIC) and are stored in its hardware, such as the card’s read-only memory or some other firmware mechanism. If assigned by the manufacturer, a MAC address usually encodes the manufacturer’s registered identification number and may be referred to as the burned-in address (BIA). It may also be known as an Ethernet hardware address (EHA), hardware address or physical address. This can be contrasted to a programmed address, where the host device issues commands to the NIC to use an arbitrary address. A network node may have multiple NICs and each NIC must have a unique MAC address. MAC addresses are formed according to the rules of one of three numbering name spaces managed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE): MAC-48, EUI-48, and EUI-64.

CompTIA Security+ Question F-11

In which of the following steps of incident response does a team analyse the incident and determine steps to prevent a future occurrence?

A. Mitigation
B. Identification
C. Preparation
D. Lessons learned

Answer: D

Explanation:
Incident response procedures involves in chronological order: Preparation; Incident identification; Escalation and notification; Mitigation steps; Lessons learned; Reporting; Recover/reconstitution procedures; First responder; Incident isolation (Quarantine; Device removal); Data breach; Damage and loss control. Thus lessons are only learned after the mitigation occurred. For only then can you ‘step back’ and analyze the incident to prevent the same occurrence in future.