CAS-004 Security Operations — 15 Questions

Question 1

A penetration tester is performing a test against a web application. The rules of engagement prohibit any denial of service (DoS) attacks. Which of the following actions is most likely prohibited by this restriction?

Choose an answer to begin — your selection is scored in the full session.

Accepted Answer

Using a tool to send thousands of requests to overwhelm the server. Using a tool to send thousands of requests to overwhelm the server is a classic denial of service (DoS) attack, which is explicitly prohibited by the rules of engagement. The other options, such as SQL injection, file upload exploitation, and directory brute-forcing, are typical penetration testing techniques that do not inherently cause a DoS.

Answer

Performing a SQL injection that deletes a table

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Exploiting a file upload vulnerability to upload a web shell

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Running a directory brute-force tool

Question 2

During an incident response engagement, the security team identifies that a compromised host has been communicating with multiple external IP addresses using encrypted channels. The team needs to determine which processes initiated the connections. Which type of evidence collection should be performed first to preserve the most volatile data?

Accepted Answer

Perform a memory capture using a tool like DumpIt or winpmem. In digital forensics, the order of volatility dictates that volatile data (e.g., running processes, network connections) should be collected first because it is lost when the system is powered down. Memory capture preserves this data, including process information and active network connections.

Answer

Export the Windows event logs related to network activity

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Execute a network scan from the compromised host to identify active connections

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Capture a full disk image using FTK Imager

Question 3

A security analyst is investigating a potential advanced persistent threat (APT) that has evaded traditional signature-based defenses. The analyst hypothesizes that the attacker is using a specific technique from the MITRE ATT&CK framework: process injection. Which threat hunting methodology is most appropriate for this scenario?

Accepted Answer

Hypothesis-driven hunting based on a specific technique (process injection) and searching for evidence in memory and process activity. Hypothesis-driven hunting starts with a specific hypothesis based on threat intelligence or a known TTP, such as process injection. This approach is proactive and focuses on detecting behaviors consistent with the hypothesis, unlike IoC-driven hunting which relies on known indicators.

Answer

TTP-driven hunting by analyzing adversary behaviors mapped to the ATT&CK framework

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Automated hunting using SIEM correlation rules that trigger on known malicious file hashes

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IoC-driven hunting using known indicators of compromise from open-source feeds

Question 4

A security operations center (SOC) is implementing a SOAR platform to automate responses to phishing incidents. The playbook will include steps to automatically quarantine suspicious emails, delete them from user mailboxes, and block the sender's domain. Which element should the SOAR playbook incorporate to ensure the automated response does not cause unintended disruption?

Accepted Answer

A confirmation step that prompts the analyst to approve the quarantine and deletion actions. Automated actions can have negative consequences if not validated. Incorporating user confirmation before destructive actions reduces risk, especially in cases of false positives.

Answer

An automatic rollback script that restores quarantined emails after 24 hours if no user complaint

Answer

Integration with threat intelligence to verify the sender domain reputation score before blocking

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A manual approval step before executing any automated response

Question 5

A vulnerability management team is prioritizing patches for a large number of vulnerabilities discovered in a quarterly scan. A critical vulnerability in a widely used application has a CVSS base score of 9.8, but it is not currently being exploited in the wild and the application is not directly exposed to the internet. According to CVSS scoring principles, which factors should the team consider to adjust the priority?

Accepted Answer

Environmental metrics such as collateral damage potential and target distribution. CVSS environmental metrics allow organizations to modify the base score based on the specific context, such as the asset's value and exposure. This helps prioritize vulnerabilities that pose the greatest risk to the organization.

Answer

The number of other vulnerabilities in the same software product

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The age of the vulnerability since its disclosure

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Temporal metrics including exploit code maturity and remediation level

Question 6

During a penetration test, the tester has gained initial access to a web server and wants to move laterally to a database server. Which technique is most commonly used for lateral movement in a Windows environment?

Accepted Answer

Pass-the-Hash. Pass-the-Hash allows an attacker to authenticate to other systems using NTLM hashes without knowing the plaintext password, enabling lateral movement.

Answer

SQL injection

Answer

Cross-site scripting (XSS)

Answer

ARP spoofing

Question 7

An organization is deploying deception technology to detect lateral movement by attackers. Which of the following would be the most effective to detect an attacker who has gained access to the internal network and is attempting to move to a sensitive server?

Accepted Answer

A honeytoken in the form of a fake password file on a file server. Honeytokens are deceptive data (e.g., fake credentials) placed on systems; if an attacker uses them, it triggers an alert. This is effective for detecting lateral movement without requiring interaction with a full honeypot.

Answer

A network-based intrusion detection system (NIDS) on the segment

Answer

A honeypot configured to mimic a high-value database server

Answer

An endpoint detection and response (EDR) agent on all workstations

Question 8

A security analyst is reviewing logs from a SIEM and notices that a user account has been successfully authenticated from two different geographic locations within a short time span, which is impossible. The SIEM uses user behavior analytics (UBA). What type of anomaly is this most likely to detect?

Accepted Answer

A credential theft and reuse incident. UBA establishes a baseline of normal user behavior, such as typical login locations and times. An impossible travel event (e.g., logging in from two distant locations within minutes) is a common anomaly that triggers an alert.

Answer

A misconfigured VPN that routes traffic through multiple gateways

Answer

A brute-force attack on the user account

Answer

A man-in-the-middle attack intercepting the authentication

Question 9

Which of the following best describes the purpose of the STIX and TAXII standards in threat intelligence sharing?

Accepted Answer

They standardize the format and exchange of cyber threat intelligence. STIX (Structured Threat Information Expression) is a language for describing threat intelligence, and TAXII (Trusted Automated Exchange of Intelligence Information) is a protocol for exchanging that intelligence. Together they enable automated sharing of threat data.

Answer

They are tools for analyzing malware behavior in a sandbox environment

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They are used to automatically patch vulnerabilities based on threat feeds

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They provide a framework for conducting incident response exercises

Question 10

A security team is conducting a penetration test against a client's web application. During the reconnaissance phase, the tester discovers a subdomain that hosts a development version of the application with debug mode enabled. Which type of reconnaissance does this activity represent?

Accepted Answer

Active reconnaissance because the tester is sending requests to the target network to identify subdomains. Active reconnaissance involves directly interacting with the target, such as probing subdomains or services. Discovering a subdomain by scanning or querying DNS is active, as it sends traffic to the target's infrastructure.

Answer

Open-source intelligence (OSINT) gathering by examining the target's website source code

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Social engineering because the tester tricked an employee into revealing the subdomain

Answer

Passive reconnaissance because the tester is using publicly available information

Question 11

During a digital forensics investigation of a compromised Linux server, the investigator needs to preserve the evidence in a forensically sound manner. The server is still running. Which of the following should the investigator do first?

Accepted Answer

Capture the contents of RAM using a tool like LiME or fmem. According to the order of volatility, volatile data like memory should be captured first. On a running system, capturing memory preserves data that would be lost on shutdown.

Answer

Pull the power cord to preserve the disk state

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Create a forensic image of the hard drive using dd over a network connection

Answer

Run the 'history' command to see recent user commands

Question 12

Which of the following is a key benefit of using an Extended Detection and Response (XDR) solution over traditional Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)?

Accepted Answer

XDR provides centralized visibility across multiple security layers including endpoints, network, and cloud. XDR extends detection beyond endpoints to include network, email, cloud, and other data sources, providing broader visibility and correlation across the entire environment.

Answer

XDR only works with a single vendor's products

Answer

XDR eliminates the need for SIEM and SOAR systems

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XDR only focuses on network traffic analysis

Question 13

A security analyst is using Volatility to analyze a memory dump from a compromised Windows system. The analyst suspects that a rootkit is hiding processes. Which Volatility plugin should the analyst use to detect hidden processes?

Accepted Answer

psxview. The 'psxview' plugin compares process listings from different sources (e.g., EPROCESS list, PspCidTable) to find discrepancies, which can reveal hidden processes.

Answer

pslist

Answer

malfind

Answer

pstree

Question 14

A security operations team is developing a SOAR playbook to automate response to a detected ransomware outbreak. The team wants to ensure the playbook can contain the threat quickly while minimizing business disruption. Which TWO actions should the playbook include as automated responses? (Select TWO.)

Accepted Answer

Block outbound traffic to known malicious IP addresses and domains. Isolating affected systems and blocking communication to known command-and-control (C2) servers are effective containment actions. Isolating prevents lateral movement, and blocking C2 disrupts the ransomware's ability to receive instructions or exfiltrate data.

Answer

Run a full antivirus scan on all systems

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Restore all systems from the latest backup automatically

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Power off all affected servers immediately

Question 15

A security analyst is reviewing a malware sample in a sandbox environment. The analyst notes that the malware attempts to check for the presence of a debugger and modifies its behavior if one is detected. Additionally, the malware uses encrypted strings and resolves API calls dynamically. Which THREE analysis techniques would be most effective for understanding this malware's capabilities? (Select THREE.)

Accepted Answer

Static analysis using a disassembler like IDA Pro to examine the code for anti-debugging and obfuscation techniques. Static analysis can reveal encrypted strings and dynamic API resolution. Dynamic analysis in a sandbox shows runtime behavior. Debugging or reverse engineering (e.g., using a disassembler) helps understand anti-debugging tricks. Memory analysis (e.g., with Volatility) can capture the malware in action.

Answer

Network analysis using Wireshark to capture packets from the sandbox

Answer

Hash analysis by submitting the malware to VirusTotal