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200-201 Practice Question: Which THREE factors should be considered when…
Which THREE factors should be considered when tuning an IPS signature? (Choose three.)
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the misconception that time-based or packet-length parameters are valid tuning options, when in fact IPS tuning focuses on protocol context, IP addresses, and severity to balance detection accuracy and performance.
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
✓
Application protocol
Application protocol (B) is critical because IPS signatures are protocol-aware and must match the specific protocol context (e.g., HTTP, SMTP, DNS) to avoid false positives. Tuning based on the protocol ensures the signature only inspects traffic where the vulnerability or exploit is relevant, such as applying a SQL injection signature only to HTTP traffic.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Time of day
Why it's wrong here
Time of day is not a standard tuning parameter.
- ✓
Application protocol
Why this is correct
Signatures should match the intended protocol to reduce false positives.
- ✓
Source and destination IPs
Why this is correct
IP addresses are used for whitelists or blacklists.
- ✓
Signature severity
Why this is correct
Severity indicates criticality and affects tuning decisions.
- ✗
Packet length
Why it's wrong here
Packet length is rarely used for tuning signatures.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 200-201 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Cisco certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the 200-201 exam.