During a cybersecurity incident, one of the web servers at the perimeter network was affected by ransomware. Which of the following actions should be performed immediately?
Correct Answer:
C
Quarantining the server is the best action to perform immediately, as it isolates the affected server from the rest of the network and prevents the ransomware from spreading to other systems or data. Quarantining the server also preserves the evidence of the ransomware attack, which can be useful for forensic analysis and law enforcement investigation. The other actions are not as urgent as quarantining the server, as they may not stop the ransomware infection, or they may destroy valuable evidence. Shutting down the server may not remove the ransomware, and it may trigger a data deletion mechanism by the ransomware. Reimaging the server may restore its functionality, but it will also erase any traces of the ransomware and make recovery of encrypted data impossible. Updating the OS to the latest version may fix some vulnerabilities, but it will not remove the ransomware or decrypt the data. Official References:
✑ https://www.cisa.gov/stopransomware/ransomware-guide
✑ https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/publications/Ransomware_Executive_One-Pager_and_Technical_Document-FINAL.pdf
✑ https://www.cisa.gov/stopransomware/ive-been-hit-ransomware
The Chief Executive Officer of an organization recently heard that exploitation of new attacks in the industry was happening approximately 45 days after a patch was released.
Which of the following would best protect this organization?
Correct Answer:
A
A mean time to remediate (MTTR) is a metric that measures how long it takes to fix a vulnerability after it is discovered. A MTTR of 30 days would best protect the organization from the new attacks that are exploited 45 days after a patch is released, as it would ensure that the vulnerabilities are fixed before they are exploited
A company's security team is updating a section of the reporting policy that pertains to inappropriate use of resources (e.g., an employee who installs cryptominers on workstations in the office). Besides the security team, which of the following groups should the issue be escalated to first in order to comply with industry best practices?
Correct Answer:
C
The correct answer is C. Legal department.
According to the CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) certification exam objectives, one of the tasks for a security analyst is to “report and escalate security incidents to appropriate stakeholders and authorities” 1. This includes reporting any inappropriate use of resources, such as installing cryptominers on workstations, which may violate the company’s policies and cause financial and reputational damage. The legal department is the most appropriate group to escalate this issue to first, as they can advise on the legal implications and actions that can be taken against the employee. The legal department can also coordinate with other groups, such as law enforcement, help desk, or board members, as needed. The other options are not the best choices to escalate the issue to first, as they may not have the authority or expertise to handle the situation properly.
While reviewing web server logs, an analyst notices several entries with the same time stamps, but all contain odd characters in the request line. Which of the following steps should be taken next?
Correct Answer:
B
Determining what attack the odd characters are indicative of is the next step that should be taken after reviewing web server logs and noticing several entries with the same time stamps, but all contain odd characters in the request line. This step can help the analyst identify the type and severity of the attack, as well as the possible source and motive of the attacker. The odd characters in the request line may indicate that the attacker is trying to exploit a vulnerability or inject malicious code into the web server or application, such as SQL injection, cross-site scripting, buffer overflow, or command injection. The analyst can use tools and techniques such as log analysis, pattern matching, signature detection, or threat intelligence to determine what attack the odd characters are indicative of, and then proceed to the next steps of incident response, such as containment, eradication, recovery, and lessons learned. Official References:
✑ https://partners.comptia.org/docs/default-source/resources/comptia-cysa-cs0-002-exam-objectives
✑ https://www.comptia.org/certifications/cybersecurity-analyst
✑ https://www.comptia.org/blog/the-new-comptia-cybersecurity-analyst-your- questions-answered
The Chief Information Security Officer wants to eliminate and reduce shadow IT in the enterprise. Several high-risk cloud applications are used that increase the risk to the organization. Which of the following solutions will assist in reducing the risk?
Correct Answer:
A
A cloud access security broker (CASB) is a tool that can help reduce the risk of shadow IT in the enterprise by providing visibility and control over cloud applications and services. A CASB can enable policy enforcement by blocking unauthorized or risky cloud applications, enforcing data loss prevention rules, encrypting sensitive data, and detecting anomalous user behavior.