Exam SY0-701 topic 1 question 586 discussion

Actual exam question from CompTIA's SY0-701

Question #: 586
Topic #: 1

A security team receives reports about high latency and complete network unavailability throughout most of the office building. Flow logs from the campus switches show high traffic on TCP 445. Which of the following is most likely the root cause of this incident?

A. Buffer overflow
B. NTP amplification attack
C. Worm
D. DoS attack

Show Suggested Answer

Suggested Answer: C 🗳️

by Focsmind11 at June 4, 2025, 5:39 p.m.

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Gill8024

3 weeks, 2 days ago

Selected Answer: C

Given the combination of widespread network impact (high latency, unavailability) and excessive traffic specifically on TCP 445, a worm is the most likely root cause. The worm would be attempting to spread by exploiting SMB, thus saturating the network with traffic on that port

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sergezaza83

3 weeks, 2 days ago

Selected Answer: C

TCP port 445 is commonly used by Microsoft SMB (Server Message Block) protocol, which is often targeted by worms like WannaCry and NotPetya. These worms: Exploit vulnerabilities in SMB (especially on TCP 445) Spread rapidly across networks Cause high traffic, network congestion, and even system failures

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Focsmind11

3 weeks, 2 days ago

Selected Answer: C

TCP port 445 is used for SMB (Server Message Block), which is commonly exploited by network-propagating worms, such as WannaCry or NotPetya. These worms spread quickly across a network by exploiting vulnerabilities in SMB services, often overwhelming the network with malicious traffic, causing: High latency Network unavailability Massive traffic on port 445 (as shown in flow logs)

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