CCSP Cloud Platform and Infrastructure Security Practice Question
A security engineer is concerned about a scenario where a malicious process inside a VM breaks out of the virtualized environment to compromise the hypervisor. What is this attack called and what is the primary mitigation?
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
✓
VM escape; regularly patch the hypervisor
VM escape occurs when code inside a VM accesses the hypervisor. Patching the hypervisor closes known vulnerabilities.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
VM sprawl; use resource limits
Why it's wrong here
VM sprawl is unmanaged growth, not an attack.
- ✗
Side-channel attack; disable hyperthreading
Why it's wrong here
Side-channel is different; disabling hyperthreading is not the primary mitigation for escape.
- ✗
Privilege escalation; enable SELinux inside VM
Why it's wrong here
Privilege escalation is broader; SELinux inside VM doesn't prevent hypervisor attacks.
- ✓
VM escape; regularly patch the hypervisor
Why this is correct
VM escape is a critical multi-tenancy risk; patching is key.
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
This CCSP question is part of Courseiva's 964-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This CCSP practice question is part of Courseiva's free ISC2 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 CCSP exam.