XK0-006 Security Practice Question
An administrator runs 'auditctl -w /etc/passwd -p wa -k passwd_changes' to monitor changes to /etc/passwd. Which command should be used to search the audit log for all events related to this watch?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many exam-takers confuse `ausearch` (for searching logs) with `aureport` (for generating summaries) or `auditctl -l` (for listing rules), leading them to pick a command that does not actually retrieve historical audit events.
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
✓
ausearch -k passwd_changes
The `ausearch -k passwd_changes` command is correct because it searches the audit log for events that were tagged with the key `passwd_changes` when the watch was created via `auditctl -w /etc/passwd -p wa -k passwd_changes`. The `-k` option in `auditctl` assigns a key to the rule, and `ausearch` uses that same key to filter and retrieve matching audit records from `/var/log/audit/audit.log`.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
ausearch -k passwd_changes
Why this is correct
Correct. ausearch with -k searches for audit events with that key.
- ✗
auditctl -l -k passwd_changes
Why it's wrong here
auditctl -l lists current rules, not searches audit logs.
- ✗
tail -f /var/log/audit/audit.log | grep passwd_changes
Why it's wrong here
While possible, ausearch is the proper tool for structured audit log searching.
- ✗
aureport -k passwd_changes
Why it's wrong here
aureport generates reports, not searches; ausearch is for searching.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This XK0-006 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA 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 XK0-006 exam.