CompTIA SY0-401 Exam Actual Questions

Sara, the security administrator, must configure the corporate firewall to allow all public IP addresses on the internal interface of the firewall to be translated to one public IP address on the external interface of the same firewall. Which of the following should Sara configure?

Correct Answer: A 🗳️
Port Address Translation (PAT), is an extension to network address translation (NAT) that permits multiple devices on a local area network (LAN) to be mapped to a single public IP address. The goal of PAT is to conserve IP addresses.
Most home networks use PAT. In such a scenario, the Internet Service Provider (ISP) assigns a single IP address to the home network's router. When Computer
X logs on the Internet, the router assigns the client a port number, which is appended to the internal IP address. This, in effect, gives Computer X a unique address. If Computer Z logs on the Internet at the same time, the router assigns it the same local IP address with a different port number. Although both computers are sharing the same public IP address and accessing the Internet at the same time, the router knows exactly which computer to send specific packets to because each computer has a unique internal address.
Incorrect Answers:
B: NAP is a Microsoft technology for controlling network access of a computer host based on system health of the host.
C: Destination network address translation (DNAT) is a technique for transparently changing the destination IP address of an end route packet and performing the inverse function for any replies. Any router situated between two endpoints can perform this transformation of the packet. DNAT is commonly used to publish a service located in a private network on a publicly accessible IP address. This use of DNAT is also called port forwarding. DNAT does not allow for many internal devices to share one public IP address.
D: NAC is an approach to computer network security that attempts to unify endpoint security technology (such as antivirus, host intrusion prevention, and vulnerability assessment), user or system authentication and network security enforcement.
References:
http://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/definition/Port-Address-Translation-PAT http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_Access_Protection http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_address_translation#DNAT http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_Access_Control

Which of the following devices is MOST likely being used when processing the following?
1 PERMIT IP ANY ANY EQ 80
2 DENY IP ANY ANY

Correct Answer: A 🗳️
Firewalls, routers, and even switches can use ACLs as a method of security management. An access control list has a deny ip any any implicitly at the end of any access control list. ACLs deny by default and allow by exception.
Incorrect Answers:
B: Network-based intrusion prevention system (NIPS) monitors the entire network for suspicious traffic by analyzing protocol activity.
C: A load balancer is used to distribute network traffic load across several network links or network devices.
D: A URL filter is used to block URLs (websites) to prevent users accessing the website.
References:
, Sybex, Indianapolis, 2014, pp. 10, 24
http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/support/docs/security/ios-firewall/23602-confaccesslists.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intrusion_prevention_system http://www.provision.ro/threat-management/web-application-security/url-filtering#pagei-1|pagep-1|

The security administrator at ABC company received the following log information from an external party:
10:45:01 EST, SRC 10.4.3.7:3056, DST 8.4.2.1:80, ALERT, Directory traversal
10:45:02 EST, SRC 10.4.3.7:3057, DST 8.4.2.1:80, ALERT, Account brute force
10:45:03 EST, SRC 10.4.3.7:3058, DST 8.4.2.1:80, ALERT, Port scan
The external party is reporting attacks coming from abc-company.com. Which of the following is the reason the ABC companys security administrator is unable to determine the origin of the attack?

Correct Answer: D 🗳️
PAT would ensure that computers on ABCs LAN translate to the same IP address, but with a different port number assignment. The log information shows the IP address, not the port number, making it impossible to pin point the exact source.
Incorrect Answers:
A: A network-based IDS (NIDS) watches network traffic in real time. Its reliable for detecting network-focused attacks, such as bandwidth-based DoS attacks. This will not have any bearing on the security administrator at ABC Company finding the root of the attack.
B: UTC is the abbreviation for Coordinated Universal Time, which is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. The time in the log is not the issue in this case.
C: Whether the external party uses a firewall or not, will not have any bearing on the security administrator at ABC Company finding the root of the attack.
References:
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/P/PAT.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intrusion_prevention_system
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coordinated_Universal_Time

Which of the following security devices can be replicated on a Linux based computer using IP tables to inspect and properly handle network based traffic?

Correct Answer: C 🗳️
Ip tables are a user-space application program that allows a system administrator to configure the tables provided by the Linux kernel firewall and the chains and rules it stores.
Incorrect Answers:
A: A sniffer is a tool used in the process of monitoring the data that is transmitted across a network.
B, D: A router is connected to two or more data lines from different networks, whereas a network switch is connected to data lines from one single network. These may include a firewall, but not by default.
References:
, 6th Edition, Sybex, Indianapolis, 2014, p. 342
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iptables
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Router_(computing)

Which of the following firewall types inspects Ethernet traffic at the MOST levels of the OSI model?

Correct Answer: B 🗳️
Stateful inspections occur at all levels of the network.
Incorrect Answers:
A: Packet-filtering firewalls operate at the Network layer (Layer 3) and the Transport layer (Layer 4) of the Open Systems Interconnect (OSI) model.
C: The proxy function can occur at either the application level or the circuit level.
D: Application Firewalls operate at the Application layer (Layer7) of the OSI model.
References:
, Sybex, Indianapolis, 2014, pp. 98-100
, Sybex, Indianapolis, 2014, p. 6

The Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) has mandated that all IT systems with credit card data should be segregated from the main corporate network to prevent unauthorized access and that access to the IT systems should be logged.
Which of the following would BEST meet the CISOs requirements?

Correct Answer: C 🗳️
The basic purpose of a firewall is to isolate one network from another.
Incorrect Answers:
A: The terms protocol analyzer and packet sniffer are interchangeable. They refer to the tools used in the process of monitoring the data that is transmitted across a network.
B: A network-based IDS (NIDS) watches network traffic in real time. Its reliable for detecting network-focused attacks, such as bandwidth-based DoS attacks.
D: Web proxies are used to forward HTTP requests.
E: Layer 2 switching uses the media access control address (MAC address) from the host's network interface cards (NICs) to decide where to forward frames.
Layer 2 switching is hardware based, which means switches use application-specific integrated circuit (ASICs) to build and maintain filter tables (also known as
MAC address tables or CAM tables).
References:
, 6th Edition, Sybex, Indianapolis, 2014, p. 342
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intrusion_prevention_system
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LAN_switching
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proxy_server#Web_proxy_servers

Which of the following network design elements allows for many internal devices to share one public IP address?

Correct Answer: B 🗳️
Port Address Translation (PAT), is an extension to network address translation (NAT) that permits multiple devices on a local area network (LAN) to be mapped to a single public IP address. The goal of PAT is to conserve IP addresses.
Most home networks use PAT. In such a scenario, the Internet Service Provider (ISP) assigns a single IP address to the home network's router. When Computer
X logs on the Internet, the router assigns the client a port number, which is appended to the internal IP address. This, in effect, gives Computer X a unique address. If Computer Z logs on the Internet at the same time, the router assigns it the same local IP address with a different port number. Although both computers are sharing the same public IP address and accessing the Internet at the same time, the router knows exactly which computer to send specific packets to because each computer has a unique internal address.
Incorrect Answers:
A: Destination network address translation (DNAT) is a technique for transparently changing the destination IP address of an end route packet and performing the inverse function for any replies. Any router situated between two endpoints can perform this transformation of the packet. DNAT is commonly used to publish a service located in a private network on a publicly accessible IP address. This use of DNAT is also called port forwarding. DNAT does not allow for many internal devices to share one public IP address.
C: DNS (Domain Name System) is a service used to translate hostnames or URLs to IP addresses. DNS does not allow for many internal devices to share one public IP address.
D: A DMZ or demilitarized zone is a physical or logical subnetwork that contains and exposes an organization's external-facing services to a larger and untrusted network, usually the Internet. The purpose of a DMZ is to add an additional layer of security to an organization's local area network (LAN); an external network node only has direct access to equipment in the DMZ, rather than any other part of the network. A DMZ does not allow for many internal devices to share one public IP address.
References:
http://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/definition/Port-Address-Translation-PAT http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_address_translation#DNAT http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_Name_System http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DMZ_(computing)

Which of the following is the best practice when securing a switch from physical access?

Correct Answer: D 🗳️
Disabling unused switch ports is a simple method many network administrators use to help secure their network from unauthorized access.
All ports not in use should be disabled. Otherwise, they present an open door for an attacker to enter.
Incorrect Answers:
A: Disabling unnecessary accounts would only block those specific accounts.
B: A security baseline is a standardized minimal level of security that all systems in an organization must comply with. Printing it would not secure the switch from physical access.
C: The purpose of an access list is to identify specifically who can enter a facility.
References:
http://orbit-computer-solutions.com/How-To-Configure-Switch-Security.php
, 6th Edition, Sybex, Indianapolis, 2014, p. 60
, Sybex, Indianapolis, 2014, p. 207

Which of the following devices would be MOST useful to ensure availability when there are a large number of requests to a certain website?

Correct Answer: B 🗳️
Load balancing refers to shifting a load from one device to another. A load balancer can be implemented as a software or hardware solution, and it is usually associated with a devicea router, a firewall, NAT appliance, and so on. In its most common implementation, a load balancer splits the traffic intended for a website into individual requests that are then rotated to redundant servers as they become available.
Incorrect Answers:
A: The terms protocol analyzing and packet sniffing are interchangeable. They refer to the process of monitoring the data that is transmitted across a network.
C: A VPN concentrator is a hardware device used to create remote access VPNs. The concentrator creates encrypted tunnel sessions between hosts, and many use two-factor authentication for additional security.
D: One of the newest buzzwords is web security gateway, which can be thought of as a proxy server (performing proxy and caching functions) with web protection software built in. Depending on the vendor, the "web protection" can range from a standard virus scanner on incoming packets to monitoring outgoing user traffic for red flags as well.
References:
, 6th Edition, Sybex, Indianapolis, 2014, pp. 103, 104, 118

Pete, the system administrator, wishes to monitor and limit users access to external websites.
Which of the following would BEST address this?

Correct Answer: D 🗳️
A proxy is a device that acts on behalf of other(s). In the interest of security, all internal user interaction with the Internet should be controlled through a proxy server. The proxy server should automatically block known malicious sites. The proxy server should cache often-accessed sites to improve performance.
Incorrect Answers:
A: A network-based IDS (NIDS) approach to IDS attaches the system to a point in the network where it can monitor and report on all network traffic.
B: This would block all web traffic, as port 80 is used for World Wide Web.
C: In its most common implementation, a load balancer splits the traffic intended for a website into individual requests that are then rotated to redundant servers as they become available.
References:
, 6th Edition, Sybex, Indianapolis, 2014, pp. 98, 103, 111