Free Practice Questions for Cisco 200-201 Exam

 According to the NIST Incident Handling Guide, the analysis phase is the next phase of this investigation. The analysis phase involves examining the evidence and determining the impact, scope, and cause of the incident. The analyst should also identify the attacker’s methods, tools, and objectives, as well as any indicators of compromise or malicious activity. The analysis phase may also involve collecting additional data, such as logs, network traffic, or malware samples, to support the investigation. The analysis phase is crucial for developing an effective response and recovery strategy, as well as preventing or mitigating future incidents. References:

NIST Special Publication 800-61 Revision 2, Computer Security Incident Handling Guide, Section 3.2.4, Analysis (https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/SpecialPublications/NIST.SP.800-61r2.pdf)

Understanding Cisco Cybersecurity Operations Fundamentals (CBROPS) v1.0, Module 5: Security Incident Response, Lesson 5.2: Incident Response Process, Topic 5.2.3: Analysis Phase (https://learningnetworkstore.cisco.com/on-demand-e-learning/understanding-cisco-cybersecurity-operations-fundamentals-cbrops-v1-0/CSCU-LP-CBROPS-V1-028093.html)

Windows Security Event ID 4625 is generated when an account fails to log on. When a SOC analyst observes a large number of Audit Failure events occurring in rapid succession, this is a strong indicator of a brute-force authentication attack.

Brute-force attacks involve repeatedly attempting different username and password combinations to gain unauthorized access to a system. These attacks commonly target Windows servers exposed to internal or external networks and often focus on privileged or commonly used accounts. The repeated failures shown in the exhibit indicate that authentication attempts are being made unsuccessfully over a short time period, which is abnormal for standard user behavior.

Option A is incorrect because the logs clearly show that Windows auditing is functioning correctly and recording failures. Option B is incorrect because normal Windows activity does not generate large volumes of failed authentication events in a short time frame. Option D is incorrect because a Denial-of-Service (DoS) attack targets system availability and resource exhaustion, not authentication mechanisms.

Cybersecurity operations documentation highlights failed login storms as one of the most common indicators of credential-based attacks. SIEM platforms are designed to alert analysts on such patterns because they often precede account compromise or lateral movement attempts.

A file hash is a unique identifier that is used to detect a specific file. It is generated by running a file through a cryptographic hash function, which produces a string of characters that represents the contents of the file. If even a single bit in the file changes, the resulting hash will be different, making it an effective way to identify files uniquely.

 Running all processes as root or administrator violates the principle of least privilege, which states that users and processes should be granted only the minimum permissions necessary to perform their specific role or function within an organization. Running all processes as root or administrator gives them full access and control over the system, which increases the risk of unauthorized actions, malicious attacks, and accidental errors. It also makes it easier for attackers to escalate their privileges and compromise the system. References:

Understanding Cisco Cybersecurity Operations Fundamentals (CBROPS) v1.0, Module 1: Security Concepts, Lesson 1.2: Security Principles

Cisco Certified CyberOps Associate Overview, Exam Topics, 1.1 Explain the CIA triad

Asymmetric cryptography, also known as public key cryptography, involves two keys: a public key for encryption and a private key for decryption. This method ensures that even if the public key is known, only the holder of the private key can decrypt the message, thus providing a secure way to transfer data. References: Asymmetric encryption is beneficial for secure data transfer because it allows message authentication, non-repudiation, and detects tampering, although it is slower than symmetric encryption

Transaction data consists of connection level, application-specific records generated from network traffic. It provides information about the source, destination, protocol, and application of each network connection. Transaction data can be used to identify anomalies, malicious activities, and user behaviors on the network. References := Cisco CyberOps Engineer