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200-201 Practice Question: A security analyst is investigating a potential…
A security analyst is investigating a potential data exfiltration incident. The analyst notices that a large amount of data has been sent to an external IP address over port 443 during non-business hours. The company uses a proxy server that logs all outbound connections. Which action should the analyst take first to validate the suspicion?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the candidate's ability to prioritize log analysis over reactive actions, and the trap here is that candidates may jump to blocking the IP (Option A) or escalating (Option D) without first using available logs to validate the suspicion.
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
✓
Check the proxy logs to see the destination IP and user agent string.
Proxy logs contain the destination IP and user agent string, which are critical for validating whether the external IP is legitimate or malicious. By checking these logs first, the analyst can correlate the outbound connection with known threat intelligence or anomalous user agents without disrupting operations or consuming resources on unnecessary packet captures.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Immediately block the external IP address at the firewall.
Why it's wrong here
Blocking without investigation may disrupt legitimate traffic and does not provide evidence.
- ✗
Run a packet capture on the internal server to analyze the payload.
Why it's wrong here
Packet capture may not be feasible or might miss the traffic if it has already occurred.
- ✓
Check the proxy logs to see the destination IP and user agent string.
Why this is correct
Proxy logs provide details about the connection and can help identify if the traffic is suspicious.
- ✗
Notify the security team lead and wait for further instructions.
Why it's wrong here
Waiting may delay investigation and allow further data exfiltration.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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