200-201 Network Intrusion Analysis Practice Question
This 200-201 practice question tests your understanding of network intrusion analysis. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A junior analyst reports that the network-based intrusion detection system (NIDS) has been generating alerts for a signature that detects a known exploit of a web server. The alert triggers on every connection to the company's internal web server over port 80. The analyst has verified that the web server is fully patched and the traffic is normal HTTP requests. The analyst asks you for advice. What should you recommend as the first step?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "first"
Why it matters: Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Disable the specific signature for the web server's IP address in the IDS.
Option D is correct because the NIDS is generating false positives: the signature matches normal HTTP traffic to a fully patched web server. Disabling the signature for that specific IP address eliminates the noise without compromising security, as the server is not vulnerable to the exploit. This is a standard tuning action in intrusion detection to reduce alert fatigue while maintaining coverage for other hosts.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Verify that the web server is fully patched and configure a patch management system.
Why it's wrong here
Patching is already done; this does not address the false positive alerts.
✗
Reconfigure the web server to use a non-standard port.
Why it's wrong here
Changing ports is not a recommended security practice and may break functionality.
✗
Run a packet capture to analyze the HTTP requests.
Why it's wrong here
The analyst already knows the traffic is normal; packet capture is redundant.
✓
Disable the specific signature for the web server's IP address in the IDS.
Why this is correct
This reduces false positives while keeping detection for other servers.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "first" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Cisco often tests the candidate's ability to distinguish between a true positive and a false positive, and the trap here is that candidates may choose to investigate further (Option C) or apply a security fix (Option A) instead of recognizing that the immediate priority is to tune the IDS to reduce alert noise.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
NIDS signatures often use pattern matching on packet payloads (e.g., specific byte sequences in HTTP requests) to detect exploits. A signature for a known web server exploit might match benign HTTP requests that contain similar strings (e.g., a common URL parameter). Tuning by IP address (using a pass rule or disabling the signature for that source/destination) is a common practice in Snort or Suricata to suppress false positives while preserving the signature's effectiveness for other hosts. This approach maintains the integrity of the detection system without altering the server's configuration.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A small business has 20 workstations on the 192.168.1.0/24 network and one public IP from its ISP. The router uses PAT (NAT overload) so all 20 devices share one public address using different source ports. NAT questions test whether you understand the four address terms and which direction each translation applies.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Network Intrusion Analysis — This question tests Network Intrusion Analysis — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Disable the specific signature for the web server's IP address in the IDS. — Option D is correct because the NIDS is generating false positives: the signature matches normal HTTP traffic to a fully patched web server. Disabling the signature for that specific IP address eliminates the noise without compromising security, as the server is not vulnerable to the exploit. This is a standard tuning action in intrusion detection to reduce alert fatigue while maintaining coverage for other hosts.
What should I do if I get this 200-201 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "first". Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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