350-701 Network Security Practice Question
A security analyst notices a high number of false positives from an intrusion detection system (IDS) using signature-based detection. Which action would best reduce false positives while maintaining detection of real threats?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Disable all signatures with a high false positive rate
False positives can be reduced by tuning signatures, such as adjusting thresholds or disabling specific signatures that are known to trigger incorrectly, rather than reducing sensor sensitivity broadly.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Increase the sensor sensitivity level
Why it's wrong here
Increasing sensitivity may increase false positives.
- ✗
Switch to anomaly-based detection
Why it's wrong here
Anomaly-based detection has its own false positive issues and requires baseline learning.
- ✓
Disable all signatures with a high false positive rate
Why this is correct
Correct. Disabling specific problematic signatures reduces false positives while keeping others active.
- ✗
Decrease the severity threshold for alerts
Why it's wrong here
Lowering severity threshold may increase false positives.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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