ISC2 CC Practice Questions 1 — 50 Questions

Question 1

Which of the following is the primary purpose of a security information and event management (SIEM) system?

Accepted Answer

Correlate and analyze log data to detect incidents.. The primary purpose of a SIEM system is to aggregate, correlate, and analyze log data from multiple sources (e.g., firewalls, servers, IDS/IPS) in real time to detect security incidents. By applying correlation rules and analytics, SIEM identifies patterns or anomalies that indicate malicious activity, enabling security teams to respond promptly.

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Enforce access control policies.

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Replace the need for manual log review.

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Prevent malware infections.

Question 2

During a security incident, the incident response team isolates a compromised workstation from the network. What is the primary purpose of this action?

Accepted Answer

To prevent further damage.. Isolating a compromised workstation by disconnecting it from the network (e.g., disabling its switch port or unplugging the Ethernet cable) immediately stops all inbound and outbound traffic. This containment action prevents the attacker from moving laterally to other systems, exfiltrating data, or deploying additional malware, thereby limiting the scope and impact of the incident.

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To comply with legal requirements.

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To preserve forensic evidence.

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To allow normal operations to continue.

Question 3

Which THREE are essential elements of a disaster recovery plan? (Select THREE.)

Accepted Answer

Recovery time objectives (RTOs). Recovery time objectives (RTOs) define the maximum acceptable downtime for a system or application after a disaster. They are essential because they directly drive the design of the recovery strategy, including resource allocation and technology choices, ensuring that critical services are restored within the business's tolerance for interruption.

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Communication plan for employees

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Business impact analysis results

Question 4

Drag and drop the steps for the TCP three-way handshake into the correct order.

Accepted Answer

SYN, then SYN-ACK, then ACK. The TCP three-way handshake is a three-step process used to establish a reliable connection. The client initiates by sending a SYN (synchronize) packet to the server. The server responds with a SYN-ACK (synchronize-acknowledge) packet, acknowledging the client's request and indicating its own synchronization. Finally, the client sends an ACK (acknowledge) packet to confirm the connection establishment. This sequence ensures both sides agree on initial sequence numbers and that the connection is ready for data transfer.

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SYN, then ACK, then SYN-ACK

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SYN-ACK, then SYN, then ACK

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ACK, then SYN, then SYN-ACK

Question 5

A small business uses a cloud file storage service that allows sharing links. An employee mistakenly shared a folder containing customer data via a public link. The business wants to prevent such incidents in the future without blocking legitimate sharing. Which access control method should they implement?

Accepted Answer

Require authentication for shared links. Requiring authentication for shared links ensures that only authorized users can access the shared content, preventing public exposure of sensitive data while still allowing legitimate sharing with specific individuals. This balances security with the need to share files externally.

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Disable all external sharing

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Use watermarking on documents

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Encrypt all files

Question 6

A company implements a policy where a financial transaction must be initiated by one employee and approved by a different employee. This is an example of which access control concept?

Accepted Answer

Separation of duties. Separation of duties (SoD) is an access control concept that requires a critical task, such as a financial transaction, to be split into multiple steps performed by different individuals. This prevents any single employee from having the authority to both initiate and approve a transaction, thereby reducing the risk of fraud or error. In this scenario, the policy directly enforces SoD by ensuring that no one person can complete the entire process alone.

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Need-to-know

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Least privilege

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Job rotation

Question 7

A company is developing a business continuity plan (BCP). Which TWO of the following are essential components that must be included in a BCP?

Accepted Answer

Business Impact Analysis (BIA). Option C, Business Impact Analysis (BIA), is essential because it identifies critical business functions, quantifies the operational and financial impact of their disruption, and establishes the priorities and dependencies that drive the entire BCP strategy. Option D, Recovery Time Objective (RTO), is essential because it defines the maximum acceptable downtime for each critical process, directly shaping the recovery strategies, resource allocation, and backup/replication design documented in the BCP. Options A, B, and E are supporting inputs rather than mandatory BCP components: an asset inventory and network diagram are useful technical references, and a vulnerability assessment belongs to risk assessment activities that inform, but are not part of, the core BCP structure.

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Asset inventory

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Vulnerability assessment

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Network diagram

Question 8

A vulnerability assessment reveals that a legacy system has unpatched software. The organization decides to accept the risk because the system is isolated and has compensating controls. This decision is an example of:

Accepted Answer

Risk acceptance. Risk acceptance means the organization acknowledges the risk and chooses to retain it without taking further action, often because the cost of mitigation outweighs the potential impact or because compensating controls reduce it to an acceptable level. Here, the legacy system is isolated with compensating controls, so the organization formally accepts the residual risk.

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Risk avoidance

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Risk mitigation

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Risk transfer

Question 9

Drag and drop the steps for the incident response process according to NIST into the correct order.

Accepted Answer

Preparation, then Detection and Analysis, then Containment/Eradication/Recovery, then Post-Incident Activity. NIST incident response lifecycle: Preparation, Detection and Analysis, Containment/Eradication/Recovery, Post-Incident Activity.

Answer

Detection and Analysis, then Containment/Eradication/Recovery, then Preparation, then Post-Incident Activity

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Preparation, then Containment/Eradication/Recovery, then Detection and Analysis, then Post-Incident Activity

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Post-Incident Activity, then Preparation, then Detection and Analysis, then Containment/Eradication/Recovery

Question 10

A company is implementing a data loss prevention (DLP) solution. Which strategy BEST balances security and productivity when monitoring outgoing email?

Accepted Answer

Alert on policy violations and allow user to override with manager approval. It balances security and productivity by alerting on policy violations while allowing users to override the block with manager approval. This approach ensures that legitimate business communications are not disrupted, while still enforcing DLP policies through a secondary review process. In a DLP solution, this is often implemented via a 'justify and override' workflow, where the user must provide a reason and receive approval from a manager before the email is sent.

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Log all emails without any alerts

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Block all emails containing keywords like 'confidential'

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Encrypt all outgoing emails automatically

Question 11

Which two of the following are common methods to secure a virtual private network (VPN) connection? (Choose two.)

Accepted Answer

SSL/TLS. SSL/TLS is a common method to secure VPN connections, typically used in SSL VPNs. It operates at the transport layer (Layer 4) and provides encryption, authentication, and integrity for data transmitted over the internet, often using port 443 to bypass firewalls. This makes it ideal for remote access VPNs where clients connect via a web browser or a lightweight client.

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ICMP

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LDAP

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SNMP

Question 12

A security team is investigating a potential ARP spoofing attack on the local network. Which two measures can effectively detect or prevent such attacks? (Choose two.)

Accepted Answer

Enable DHCP snooping with Dynamic ARP Inspection.. Option B is correct because Dynamic ARP Inspection (DAI), working together with DHCP snooping, validates ARP packets against the trusted DHCP snooping binding table and drops ARP packets with spoofed IP-to-MAC mappings, directly detecting and preventing ARP spoofing on the local network. Option E is correct because configuring static ARP entries on critical servers hard-codes the legitimate IP-to-MAC mappings, so the servers ignore forged ARP replies and cannot be poisoned by an attacker on the same segment. Option A does not belong because disabling ICMP redirects only prevents hosts from accepting forged redirect messages for routing manipulation, not ARP cache poisoning. Option C does not belong because MAC address filtering on switches only restricts which MAC addresses may appear on a port and does not validate ARP payloads, so an attacker can still spoof ARP for an allowed MAC. Option D does not belong because STP BPDU guard protects against rogue switches sending spanning-tree BPDUs and has no role in detecting or preventing ARP spoofing.

Answer

Disable ICMP redirects on hosts.

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Use MAC address filtering on switches.

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Enable STP BPDU guard.

Question 13

During a forensic investigation, it is crucial to preserve the original evidence. What is the first step the investigator should take when acquiring a hard drive?

Accepted Answer

Create a forensic image using a write blocker. Creating a bit-for-bit forensic image using a write blocker preserves the original evidence. Option D (calculate the hash) is done after imaging to verify integrity. Option A (booting the drive) would modify data and compromise the evidence. Option B (turning off the computer and removing the hard drive) may be necessary but is not the first step in acquisition; the first step is to create a forensic image with a write blocker.

Answer

Boot the drive to check for operating system errors

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Turn off the computer and remove the hard drive

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Calculate the hash of the original drive

Question 14

An organization requires that financial transactions over $10,000 be approved by two different managers. This is an example of which access control principle?

Accepted Answer

Separation of duties. Separation of duties ensures that no single individual has complete control over a critical action, reducing the risk of fraud or error.

Answer

Defense in depth

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Need to know

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Least privilege

Question 15

A network technician is setting up a remote access VPN for employees using IPsec. The company's firewall is configured to allow IPsec traffic. Employees report that they can successfully establish the VPN connection (tunnel appears up), but they cannot ping or access any internal resources (e.g., file servers). The firewall logs show that packets from the VPN client IP addresses are being dropped at the firewall interface. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of this issue?

Accepted Answer

The firewall's access control list does not permit traffic from the VPN subnet to the internal network.. The VPN tunnel is established, meaning Phase 1 and Phase 2 of IPsec are complete and the client has a valid IP from the pool. However, packets from the VPN subnet are being dropped at the firewall interface, which indicates that the firewall's access control list (ACL) does not include a permit statement for traffic sourced from the VPN client subnet destined to the internal network. Without this ACL entry, the firewall will drop the traffic even though the tunnel is up.

Answer

The VPN client is not assigned a correct IP address from the pool.

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The firewall's intrusion prevention system is blocking the traffic.

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The IPsec encryption algorithm is incompatible between client and firewall.

Question 16

A company has a disaster recovery plan that includes a hot site. Which of the following is the PRIMARY advantage of a hot site over a cold site?

Accepted Answer

Faster recovery time. A hot site is a fully operational duplicate of the primary data center, complete with live servers, storage, networking, and synchronized data. This eliminates the need to procure and configure hardware after a disaster, enabling recovery in minutes or hours rather than days or weeks. The primary advantage is therefore a significantly faster recovery time objective (RTO) compared to a cold site, which has no pre-installed equipment.

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Easier maintenance

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Greater security

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Lower cost

Question 17

A security professional is implementing a file integrity monitoring (FIM) system on critical servers. Which element of the CIA triad does this primarily address?

Accepted Answer

Integrity. File integrity monitoring detects unauthorized changes to files, ensuring data accuracy and completeness, which is the integrity element.

Answer

Confidentiality

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Availability

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Non-repudiation

Question 18

A company uses WPA2-Enterprise for wireless authentication. What additional security measure should be implemented to protect against rogue access points?

Accepted Answer

Deploy a wireless intrusion prevention system (WIPS). WPA2-Enterprise uses 802.1X for authentication, but it does not inherently detect or block rogue access points (APs) that mimic legitimate SSIDs. A Wireless Intrusion Prevention System (WIPS) continuously monitors the RF spectrum, identifies unauthorized APs by analyzing beacon frames, probe responses, and MAC addresses, and can automatically contain them by sending deauthentication frames or alerting administrators. This is the most direct and effective measure to protect against rogue APs in an enterprise WLAN.

Answer

Enable MAC filtering

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Implement 802.1X with mutual authentication

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Use WPA3

Question 19

Refer to the exhibit. A user with this policy tries to list objects in a container but gets an access denied error. What is the most likely reason?

Accepted Answer

The policy does not grant the List permission on the container.. The policy shown grants Read permission, which allows reading individual objects, but does not include the List permission on the container. Listing objects requires the List action on the container resource. Without this permission, the user receives an access denied error when attempting to list objects, even if they can read objects directly.

Answer

The resource identifier should include the container itself.

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The effect should be Deny.

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The user lacks encryption keys.

Question 20

During an incident, the IR team identifies that the root cause is a zero-day vulnerability. Which of the following is the best immediate action?

Accepted Answer

Implement compensating controls. When a zero-day vulnerability is the root cause, no vendor patch exists yet (option C is impossible). Rebuilding systems (option B) without addressing the vulnerability leaves them re-exposed. The best immediate action is to implement compensating controls—such as firewall rules, IDS/IPS signatures, or application-layer filtering—to mitigate the risk until a permanent fix is available. This aligns with incident response containment strategies that prioritize reducing impact while preserving forensic evidence.

Answer

Report to CERT/CC

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Rebuild all affected systems

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Apply a vendor patch