350-701: Implementing and Operating Cisco Security Core Technologies

In which form of attack is alternate encoding, such as hexadecimal representation, most often observed?

Smurf
distributed denial of service
cross-site scripting
rootkit exploit

Correct answer: C

Explanation:

Cross site scripting (also known as XSS) occurs when a web application gathers malicious data from a user. The data is usually gathered in the form of a hyperlink which contains malicious content within it. The user will most likely click on this link from another website, instant message, or simply just reading a web board or email message. Usually the attacker will encode the malicious portion of the link to the site in HEX (or other encoding methods) so the request is less suspicious looking to the user when clicked on. For example the code below is written in hex:<a href=&#x6A&#x61&#x76&#x61&#x73&#x63&#x72&#x69&#x70&#x74&#x3A&#x61&#x6C&#x65&#x72&#x74&#x28&#x27&#x58&#x53&#x53&#x27&#x29>Click Here</a> is equivalent to:<a href=javascript:alert('XSS')>Click Here</a>Note: In the format “&#xhhhh“, hhhh is the code point in hexadecimal form.

Cross site scripting (also known as XSS) occurs when a web application gathers malicious data from a user. The data is usually gathered in the form of a hyperlink which contains malicious content within it. The user will most likely click on this link from another website, instant message, or simply just reading a web board or email message.

Usually the attacker will encode the malicious portion of the link to the site in HEX (or other encoding methods) so the request is less suspicious looking to the user when clicked on.

For example the code below is written in hex:

<a href=&#x6A&#x61&#x76&#x61&#x73&#x63&#x72&#x69&#x70&#x74&#x3A&#x61&#x6C&#x65&#x72&#x74&#x28&#x27&#x58&#x53&#x53&#x27&#x29>Click Here</a>

is equivalent to:

<a href=javascript:alert('XSS')>Click Here</a>

Note: In the format “&#xhhhh“, hhhh is the code point in hexadecimal form.

Which flaw does an attacker leverage when exploiting SQL injection vulnerabilities?

user input validation in a web page or web application
Linux and Windows operating systems
database
web page images

Correct answer: A

Explanation:

SQL injection usually occurs when you ask a user for input, like their username/userid, but the user gives (“injects”) you an SQL statement that you will unknowingly run on your database. For example:Look at the following example, which creates a SELECT statement by adding a variable (txtUserId) to a select string. The variable is fetched from user input (getRequestString):txtUserId = getRequestString(“UserId”); txtSQL = “SELECT * FROM Users WHERE UserId = ” + txtUserId; If user enter something like this: “100 OR 1=1” then the SQL statement will look like this:SELECT * FROM Users WHERE UserId = 100 OR 1=1; The SQL above is valid and will return ALL rows from the “Users” table, since OR 1=1 is always TRUE. A hacker might get access to all the user names and passwords in this database.

SQL injection usually occurs when you ask a user for input, like their username/userid, but the user gives (“injects”) you an SQL statement that you will unknowingly run on your database. For example:

Look at the following example, which creates a SELECT statement by adding a variable (txtUserId) to a select string. The variable is fetched from user input (getRequestString):

txtUserId = getRequestString(“UserId”);

txtSQL = “SELECT * FROM Users WHERE UserId = ” + txtUserId;

If user enter something like this: “100 OR 1=1” then the SQL statement will look like this:

SELECT * FROM Users WHERE UserId = 100 OR 1=1;

The SQL above is valid and will return ALL rows from the “Users” table, since OR 1=1 is always TRUE. A hacker might get access to all the user names and passwords in this database.

Which two prevention techniques are used to mitigate SQL injection attacks? (Choose two)

Check integer, float, or Boolean string parameters to ensure accurate values.
Use prepared statements and parameterized queries.
Secure the connection between the web and the app tier.
Write SQL code instead of using object-relational mapping libraries.
Block SQL code execution in the web application database login.

Correct answer: AB

Which two endpoint measures are used to minimize the chances of falling victim to phishing and social engineering attacks? (Choose two)

Patch for cross-site scripting.
Perform backups to the private cloud.
Protect against input validation and character escapes in the endpoint.
Install a spam and virus email filter.
Protect systems with an up-to-date antimalware program.

Correct answer: DE

Explanation:

Phishing attacks are the practice of sending fraudulent communications that appear to come from a reputable source. It is usually done through email. The goal is to steal sensitive data like credit card and login information, or to install malware on the victim’s machine.

Which two mechanisms are used to control phishing attacks? (Choose two)

Enable browser alerts for fraudulent websites.
Define security group memberships.
Revoke expired CRL of the websites.
Use antispyware software.
Implement email filtering techniques.

Correct answer: AE

Which two behavioral patterns characterize a ping of death attack? (Choose two)

The attack is fragmented into groups of 16 octets before transmission.
The attack is fragmented into groups of 8 octets before transmission.
Short synchronized bursts of traffic are used to disrupt TCP connections.
Malformed packets are used to crash systems.
Publicly accessible DNS servers are typically used to execute the attack.

Correct answer: BD

Explanation:

Ping of Death (PoD) is a type of Denial of Service (DoS) attack in which an attacker attempts to crash, destabilize, or freeze the targeted computer or service by sending malformed or oversized packets using a simple ping command. A correctly-formed ping packet is typically 56 bytes in size, or 64 bytes when the ICMP header is considered, and 84 including Internet Protocol version 4 header. However, any IPv4 packet (including pings) may be as large as 65,535 bytes. Some computer systems were never designed to properly handle a ping packet larger than the maximum packet size because it violates the Internet Protocol documented Like other large but well-formed packets, a ping of death is fragmented into groups of 8 octets before transmission. However, when the target computer reassembles the malformed packet, a buffer overflow can occur, causing a system crash and potentially allowing the injection of malicious code.

Ping of Death (PoD) is a type of Denial of Service (DoS) attack in which an attacker attempts to crash, destabilize, or freeze the targeted computer or service by sending malformed or oversized packets using a simple ping command.

A correctly-formed ping packet is typically 56 bytes in size, or 64 bytes when the ICMP header is considered, and 84 including Internet Protocol version 4 header. However, any IPv4 packet (including pings) may be as large as 65,535 bytes. Some computer systems were never designed to properly handle a ping packet larger than the maximum packet size because it violates the Internet Protocol documented Like other large but well-formed packets, a ping of death is fragmented into groups of 8 octets before transmission. However, when the target computer reassembles the malformed packet, a buffer overflow can occur, causing a system crash and potentially allowing the injection of malicious code.

Which two preventive measures are used to control cross-site scripting? (Choose two)

Enable client-side scripts on a per-domain basis.
Incorporate contextual output encoding/escaping.
Disable cookie inspection in the HTML inspection engine.
Run untrusted HTML input through an HTML sanitization engine.
Same Site cookie attribute should not be used.

Correct answer: AB

What is the difference between deceptive phishing and spear phishing?

Deceptive phishing is an attacked aimed at a specific user in the organization who holds a C-level role.
A spear phishing campaign is aimed at a specific person versus a group of people.
Spear phishing is when the attack is aimed at the C-level executives of an organization.
Deceptive phishing hijacks and manipulates the DNS server of the victim and redirects the user to a false webpage.

Correct answer: B

Explanation:

In deceptive phishing, fraudsters impersonate a legitimate company in an attempt to steal people’s personal data or login credentials. Those emails frequently use threats and a sense of urgency to scare users into doing what the attackers want. Spear phishing is carefully designed to get a single recipient to respond. Criminals select an individual target within an organization, using social media and other public information – and craft a fake email tailored for that person.

In deceptive phishing, fraudsters impersonate a legitimate company in an attempt to steal people’s personal data or login credentials. Those emails frequently use threats and a sense of urgency to scare users into doing what the attackers want.

Spear phishing is carefully designed to get a single recipient to respond. Criminals select an individual target within an organization, using social media and other public information – and craft a fake email tailored for that person.

Which attack is commonly associated with C and C++ programming languages?

cross-site scripting
water holing
DDoS
buffer overflow

Correct answer: D

Explanation:

A buffer overflow (or buffer overrun) occurs when the volume of data exceeds the storage capacity of the memory buffer. As a result, the program attempting to write the data to the buffer overwrites adjacent memory locations. Buffer overflow is a vulnerability in low level codes of C and C++. An attacker can cause the program to crash, make data corrupt, steal some private information or run his/her own code. It basically means to access any buffer outside of it’s alloted memory space. This happens quite frequently in the case of arrays.

A buffer overflow (or buffer overrun) occurs when the volume of data exceeds the storage capacity of the memory buffer. As a result, the program attempting to write the data to the buffer overwrites adjacent memory locations.

Buffer overflow is a vulnerability in low level codes of C and C++. An attacker can cause the program to crash, make data corrupt, steal some private information or run his/her own code. It basically means to access any buffer outside of it’s alloted memory space. This happens quite frequently in the case of arrays.

What is a language format designed to exchange threat intelligence that can be transported over the TAXII protocol?

STIX
XMPP
pxGrid
SMTP

Correct answer: A

Explanation:

TAXII (Trusted Automated Exchange of Indicator Information) is a standard that provides a transport mechanism (data exchange) of cyber threat intelligence information in STIX (Structured Threat Information eXpression) format. In other words, TAXII servers can be used to author and exchange STIX documents among participants. STIX (Structured Threat Information eXpression) is a standardized language which has been developed in a collaborative way in order to represent structured information about cyber threats. It has been developed so it can be shared, stored, and otherwise used in a consistent manner that facilitates automation and human assisted analysis.

TAXII (Trusted Automated Exchange of Indicator Information) is a standard that provides a transport mechanism (data exchange) of cyber threat intelligence information in STIX (Structured Threat Information eXpression) format. In other words, TAXII servers can be used to author and exchange STIX documents among participants.

STIX (Structured Threat Information eXpression) is a standardized language which has been developed in a collaborative way in order to represent structured information about cyber threats. It has been developed so it can be shared, stored, and otherwise used in a consistent manner that facilitates automation and human assisted analysis.