Question 1mediummultiple choice
Full question →mediummultiple choiceObjective-mapped
A penetration tester runs a vulnerability scanner against a web server and receives a high-confidence alert that the server is vulnerable to Heartbleed (CVE-2014-0160). The tester manually verifies using an OpenSSL command and finds that the server is patched. Which of the following is the most likely cause of this false positive?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Good practice is not just finding the correct option. The wrong answers often show the exact trap the exam wants you to fall into.
A
Best answer
The scanner's vulnerability signatures are outdated and still flagging the old behavior
An outdated signature database can cause the scanner to misinterpret server responses or fail to recognize that a patch has been applied, resulting in a false positive.
B
Distractor review
The scanner's plugin for Heartbleed was misconfigured and sent malformed packets
While misconfiguration could cause errors, it is less likely to produce a high-confidence alert for a specific vulnerability without a degree of valid detection logic.
C
Distractor review
The server returned a generic error message that the scanner misinterpreted as a sign of the vulnerability
Generic error messages are not typically used as indicators for Heartbleed; the scanner specifically checks for memory leak responses.
D
Distractor review
The scanner's network connection was intermittent, causing incomplete responses that were incorrectly flagged
Network issues typically cause scan failures or timeouts, not high-confidence false positives for a specific vulnerability.
Common exam trap
Common exam trap: NAT rules depend on direction and matching traffic
NAT is not only about the public address. The inside/outside interface roles and the ACL or rule that matches traffic are just as important.
Technical deep dive
How to think about this question
NAT questions usually test address translation, overload/PAT behaviour, static mappings and whether the right traffic is being translated. Read the interface direction and address terms carefully.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
- PAT allows many inside hosts to share one public address using ports.
- Inside local and inside global describe the private and translated addresses.
- NAT ACLs identify traffic for translation, not always security filtering.
TExam Day Tips
- Identify inside and outside interfaces first.
- Check whether the scenario needs static NAT, dynamic NAT or PAT.
- Do not confuse NAT matching ACLs with normal packet-filtering intent.
Related practice questions
Related PT0-002 practice-question pages
Use these pages to review the topic behind this question. This is how one missed question becomes focused revision.
More questions from this exam
Keep practising from the same exam bank, or move into a focused topic page if this question exposed a weak area.
Question 1
A penetration tester is writing the executive summary for a report. The client's CEO needs to understand the business impact of a critical SQL injection vulnerability. Which of the following should the tester include?
Question 2
A penetration tester has gained a low-privileged shell on a Linux server. During enumeration, the tester discovers a binary with the SUID bit set that belongs to root and is known to have a buffer overflow vulnerability. What is the MOST effective next step to escalate privileges?
Question 3
A penetration tester is performing passive reconnaissance against a target domain. Which of the following resources can be used to gather information about the target without directly sending packets to the target's network? (Select two.) (Choose 2.)
Question 4
A penetration tester has obtained a TGT from a domain controller by cracking the krbtgt hash. Which attack can the tester now perform to gain persistent administrative access to any resource in the domain?
Question 5
A penetration tester is writing the executive summary for the final report. The CEO needs to understand the overall risk level and the business impact of the findings. Which of the following should be included in the executive summary?
Question 6
A penetration tester is writing the executive summary of a penetration test report. Which of the following elements is MOST important to include for a non-technical audience?
FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this PT0-002 question test?
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The scanner's vulnerability signatures are outdated and still flagging the old behavior — False positives in vulnerability scanners often occur when the scanner's signature database is outdated. The scanner may still check for the vulnerability using an older method that the patched server responds to in a way that triggers the alert. Misconfigured plugins or network issues could cause other anomalies but are less likely to produce a specific false positive for a well-known vulnerability like Heartbleed.
What should I do if I get this PT0-002 question wrong?
Then try more questions from the same exam bank and focus on understanding why the wrong options are tempting.
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