Security+ Certification/Objectives

1.0 General Security Concepts

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1.1 Compare and contrast various types of security controls

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  • Control types
    • Preventive
    • Deterrent
    • Detective
    • Corrective
    • Compensating
    • Directive

1.2 Summarize fundamental security concepts

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1.3 Explain the importance of change management processes and the impact to security.

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  • Business processes impacting security operation
    • Approval process
    • Ownership
    • Stakeholders
    • Impact analysis
    • Test results
    • Backout plan
    • Maintenance window
    • Standard operating procedure

  • Technical implications
    • Allow lists/deny lists
    • Restricted activities
    • Downtime
    • Service restart
    • Application restart
    • Legacy applications
    • Dependencies
  • Documentation
    • Updating diagrams
    • Updating policies/procedures
  • Version control

1.4 Explain the importance of using appropriate cryptographic solutions.

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  • Public key infrastructure (PKI)
    • Public key
    • Private key
    • Key escrow
  • Encryption
    • Level
      • Full-disk
      • Partition
      • File
      • Volume
      • Database
      • Record
    • Transport/communication
    • Asymmetric
    • Symmetric
    • Key exchange
    • Algorithms
    • Key length

  • Tools
    • Trusted Platform Module (TPM)
    • Hardware security module (HSM)
    • Key management system
    • Secure enclave
  • Obfuscation
    • Steganography
    • Tokenization
    • Data masking
  • Hashing
  • Salting
  • Digital signatures
  • Key stretching
  • Blockchain
  • Open public ledger
  • Certificates
    • Certificate authorities
    • Certificate revocation lists (CRLs)
    • Online Certificate Status Protocol (OCSP)
    • Self-signed
    • Third-party
    • Root of trust
    • Certificate signing request (CSR) generation
    • Wildcard

2.0 Threats, Vulnerabilities, and Mitigations

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2.1 Compare and contrast common threat actors and motivations.

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  • Threat actors
    • Nation-state
    • Unskilled attacker
    • Hacktivist
    • Insider threat
    • Organized crime
    • Shadow IT
  • Attributes of actors
    • Internal/external
    • Resources/funding
    • Level of sophistication/capability

  • Motivations
    • Data exfiltration
    • Espionage
    • Service disruption
    • Blackmail
    • Financial gain
    • Philosophical/political beliefs
    • Ethical
    • Revenge
    • Disruption/chaos
    • War

2.2 Explain common threat vectors and attack surfaces.

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  • Message-based
    • Email
    • Short Message Service (SMS)
    • Instant messaging (IM)
  • Image-based
  • File-based
  • Voice call
  • Removable device
  • Vulnerable software
    • Client-based vs. agentless
  • Unsupported systems and applications
  • Unsecure networks
    • Wireless
    • Wired
    • Bluetooth
  • Open service ports

  • Default credentials
  • Supply chain
    • Managed service providers (MSPs)
    • Vendors
    • Suppliers
  • Human vectors/social engineering
    • Phishing
    • Vishing
    • Smishing
    • Misinformation/disinformation
    • Impersonation
    • Business email compromise
    • Pretexting
    • Watering hole
    • Brand impersonation
    • Typosquatting

2.3 Explain various types of vulnerabilities.

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  • Application
    • Memory injection
    • Buffer overflow
    • Race conditions
      • Time-of-check (TOC)
      • Time-of-use (TOU)
    • Malicious update
  • Operating system (OS)-based
  • Web-based
    • Structured Query Language injection (SQLi)
    • Cross-site scripting (XSS)
  • Hardware
    • Firmware
    • End-of-life
    • Legacy

  • Virtualization
    • Virtual machine (VM) escape
    • Resource reuse
  • Cloud-specific
  • Supply chain
    • Service provider
    • Hardware provider
    • Software provider
  • Cryptographic
  • Misconfiguration
  • Mobile device
    • Side loading
    • Jailbreaking
  • Zero-day

2.4 Given a scenario, analyze indicators of malicious activity.

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  • Malware attacks
    • Ransomware
    • Trojan
    • Worm
    • Spyware
    • Bloatware
    • Virus
    • Keylogger
    • Logic bomb
    • Rootkit
  • Physical attacks
    • Brute force
    • Radio frequency identification (RFID) cloning
    • Environmental
  • Network attacks
    • Distributed denial-of-service (DDoS)
      • Amplified
      • Reflected
    • Domain Name System (DNS) attacks
    • Wireless
    • On-path
    • Credential replay
    • Malicious code

  • Application attacks
    • Injection
    • Buffer overflow
    • Replay
    • Privilege escalation
    • Forgery
    • Directory traversal
  • Cryptographic attacks
    • Downgrade
    • Collision
    • Birthday
  • Password attacks
    • Spraying
    • Brute force
  • Indicators
    • Account lockout
    • Concurrent session usage
    • Blocked content
    • Impossible travel
    • Resource consumption
    • Resource inaccessibility
    • Out-of-cycle logging
    • Published/documented
    • Missing logs

2.5 Explain the purpose of mitigation techniques used to secure the enterprise.

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  • Segmentation
  • Access control
    • Access control list (ACL)
    • Permissions
  • Application allow list
  • Isolation
  • Patching
  • Encryption
  • Monitoring
  • Least privilege

  • Configuration enforcement
  • Decommissioning
  • Hardening techniques
    • Encryption
    • Installation of endpoint protection
    • Host-based firewall
    • Host-based intrusion prevention system (HIPS)
    • Disabling ports/protocols
    • Default password changes
    • Removal of unnecessary software

3.0 Security Architecture

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3.1 Compare and contrast security implications of different architecture models.

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  • Architecture and infrastructure concepts
    • Cloud
      • Responsibility matrix
      • Hybrid considerations
      • Third-party vendors
    • Infrastructure as code (IaC)
    • Serverless
    • Microservices
    • Network infrastructure
      • Physical isolation
        • Air-gapped
      • Logical segmentation
      • Software-defined networking (SDN)
    • On-premises
    • Centralized vs. decentralized
    • Containerization
    • Virtualization
    • IoT
    • Industrial control systems (ICS)/ supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA)
    • Real-time operating system (RTOS)
    • Embedded systems
    • High availability

  • Considerations
    • Availability
    • Resilience
    • Cost
    • Responsiveness
    • Scalability
    • Ease of deployment
    • Risk transference
    • Ease of recovery
    • Patch availability
    • Inability to patch
    • Power
    • Compute

3.2 Given a scenario, apply security principles to secure enterprise infrastructure.

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  • Infrastructure considerations
    • Device placement
    • Security zones
    • Attack surface
    • Connectivity
    • Failure modes
      • Fail-open
      • Fail-closed
    • Device attribute
      • Active vs. passive
      • Inline vs. tap/monitor
    • Network appliances
      • Jump server
      • Proxy server
      • Intrusion prevention system (IPS)/intrusion detection system (IDS)
      • Load balancer
      • Sensors
    • Port security
      • 802.1X
      • Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP)
    • Firewall types
      • Web application firewall (WAF)
      • Unified threat management (UTM)
      • Next-generation firewall (NGFW)
      • Layer 4/Layer 7

  • Secure communication/access
    • Virtual private network (VPN)
    • Remote access
    • Tunneling
      • Transport Layer Security (TLS)
      • Internet protocol security (IPSec)
    • Software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN)
    • Secure access service edge (SASE)
  • Selection of effective controls

3.3 Compare and contrast concepts and strategies to protect data.

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  • Data types
    • Regulated
    • Trade secret
    • Intellectual property
    • Legal information
    • Financial information
    • Human- and non-human-readable
  • Data classifications
    • Sensitive
    • Confidential
    • Public
    • Restricted
    • Private
    • Critical

  • General data considerations
    • Data states
      • Data at rest
      • Data in transit
      • Data in use
    • Data sovereignty
    • Geolocation
  • Methods to secure data
    • Geographic restrictions
    • Encryption
    • Hashing
    • Masking
    • Tokenization
    • Obfuscation
    • Segmentation
    • Permission restrictions

3.4 Explain the importance of resilience and recovery in security architecture.

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  • High availability
    • Load balancing vs. clustering
  • Site considerations
    • Hot
    • Cold
    • Warm
    • Geographic dispersion
  • Platform diversity
  • Multi-cloud systems
  • Continuity of operations
  • Capacity planning
    • People
    • Technology
    • Infrastructure

  • Testing
    • Tabletop exercises
    • Fail over
    • Simulation
    • Parallel processing
  • Backups
    • Onsite/offsite
    • Frequency
    • Encryption
    • Snapshots
    • Recovery
    • Replication
    • Journaling
  • Power
    • Generators
    • Uninterruptible power supply (UPS)

4.0 Security Operations

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4.1 Given a scenario, apply common security techniques to computing resources.

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  • Secure baselines
    • Establish
    • Deploy
    • Maintain
  • Hardening targets
    • Mobile devices
    • Workstations
    • Switches
    • Routers
    • Cloud infrastructure
    • Servers
    • ICS/SCADA
    • Embedded systems
    • RTOS
    • IoT devices
  • Wireless devices
    • Installation considerations
      • Site surveys
      • Heat maps

  • Mobile solutions
    • Mobile device management (MDM)
    • Deployment models
      • Bring your own device (BYOD)
      • Corporate-owned, personally enabled (COPE)
      • Choose your own device (CYOD)
    • Connection methods
      • Cellular
      • Wi-Fi
      • Bluetooth
  • Wireless security settings
    • Wi-Fi Protected Access 3 (WPA3)
    • AAA/Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS)
    • Cryptographic protocols
    • Authentication protocols
  • Application security
    • Input validation
    • Secure cookies
    • Static code analysis
    • Code signing
  • Sandboxing
  • Monitoring

4.2 Explain the security implications of proper hardware, software, and data asset management.

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  • Acquisition/procurement process
  • Assignment/accounting
    • Ownership
    • Classification
  • Monitoring/asset tracking
    • Inventory
    • Enumeration

  • Disposal/decommissioning
    • Sanitization
    • Destruction
    • Certification
    • Data retention

4.3 Explain various activities associated with vulnerability management.

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  • Identification methods
    • Vulnerability scan
    • Application security
      • Static analysis
      • Dynamic analysis
      • Package monitoring
    • Threat feed
      • Open-source intelligence (OSINT)
      • Proprietary/third-party
      • Information-sharing organization
      • Dark web
    • Penetration testing
    • Responsible disclosure program
      • Bug bounty program
    • System/process audit

  • Analysis
    • Confirmation
      • False positive
      • False negative
    • Prioritize
    • Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS)
    • Common Vulnerability Enumeration (CVE)
    • Vulnerability classification
    • Exposure factor
    • Environmental variables
    • Industry/organizational impact
    • Risk tolerance
  • Vulnerability response and remediation
    • Patching
    • Insurance
    • Segmentation
    • Compensating controls
    • Exceptions and exemptions
  • Validation of remediation
    • Rescanning
    • Audit
    • Verification
  • Reporting

4.4 Explain security alerting and monitoring concepts and tools.

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  • Monitoring computing resources
    • Systems
    • Applications
    • Infrastructure
  • Activities
    • Log aggregation
    • Alerting
    • Scanning
    • Reporting
    • Archiving
    • Alert response and remediation/validation
      • Quarantine
      • Alert tuning

  • Tools
    • Security Content Automation Protocol (SCAP)
    • Benchmarks
    • Agents/agentless
    • Security information and event management (SIEM)
    • Antivirus
    • Data loss prevention (DLP)
    • Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) traps
    • NetFlow
    • Vulnerability scanners

4.5 Given a scenario, modify enterprise capabilities to enhance security.

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  • Firewall
    • Rules
    • Access lists
    • Ports/protocols
    • Screened subnets
  • IDS/IPS
    • Trends
    • Signatures
  • Web filter
    • Agent-based
    • Centralized proxy
    • Universal Resource Locator (URL) scanning
    • Content categorization
    • Block rules
    • Reputation
  • Operating system security
    • Group Policy
    • SELinux

  • Implementation of secure protocols
    • Protocol selection
    • Port selection
    • Transport method
  • DNS filtering
  • Email security
    • Domain-based Message Authentication Reporting and Conformance (DMARC)
    • DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM)
    • Sender Policy Framework (SPF)
    • Gateway
  • File integrity monitoring
  • DLP
  • Network access control (NAC)
  • Endpoint detection and response (EDR)/extended detection and response (XDR)
  • User behavior analytics

4.6 Given a scenario, implement and maintain identity and access management.

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  • Provisioning/de-provisioning user accounts
  • Permission assignments and implications
  • Identity proofing
  • Federation
  • Single sign-on (SSO)
    • Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP)
    • Open authorization (OAuth)
    • Security Assertions Markup Language (SAML)
  • Interoperability
  • Attestation
  • Access controls
    • Mandatory
    • Discretionary
    • Role-based
    • Rule-based
    • Attribute-based
    • Time-of-day restrictions
    • Least privilege

  • Multifactor authentication
    • Implementations
      • Biometrics
      • Hard/soft authentication tokens
      • Security keys
    • Factors
      • Something you know
      • Something you have
      • Something you are
      • Somewhere you are
  • Password concepts
    • Password best practices
      • Length
      • Complexity
      • Reuse
      • Expiration
      • Age
    • Password managers
    • Passwordless
  • Privileged access management tools
    • Just-in-time permissions
    • Password vaulting
    • Ephemeral credentials
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  • Use cases of automation and scripting
    • User provisioning
    • Resource provisioning
    • Guard rails
    • Security groups
    • Ticket creation
    • Escalation
    • Enabling/disabling services and access
    • Continuous integration and testing
    • Integrations and Application programming interfaces (APIs)

  • Benefits
    • Efficiency/time saving
    • Enforcing baselines
    • Standard infrastructure configurations
    • Scaling in a secure manner
    • Employee retention
    • Reaction time
    • Workforce multiplier
  • Other considerations
    • Complexity
    • Cost
    • Single point of failure
    • Technical debt
    • Ongoing supportability

4.8 Explain appropriate incident response activities.

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  • Process
    • Preparation
    • Detection
    • Analysis
    • Containment
    • Eradication
    • Recovery
    • Lessons learned
  • Training
  • Testing
    • Tabletop exercise
    • Simulation

  • Root cause analysis
  • Threat hunting
  • Digital forensics
    • Legal hold
    • Chain of custody
    • Acquisition
    • Reporting
    • Preservation
    • E-discovery

4.9 Given a scenario, use data sources to support an investigation

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  • Log data
    • Firewall logs
    • Application logs
    • Endpoint logs
    • OS-specific security logs
    • IPS/IDS logs
    • Network logs
    • Metadata

  • Data sources
    • Vulnerability scans
    • Automated reports
    • Dashboards
    • Packet captures

5.0 Security Program Management and Oversight

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5.1 Summarize elements of effective security governance.

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  • Guidelines
  • Policies
    • Acceptable use policy (AUP)
    • Information security policies
    • Business continuity
    • Disaster recovery
    • Incident response
    • Software development lifecycle (SDLC)
    • Change management
  • Standards
    • Password
    • Access control
    • Physical security
    • Encryption
  • Procedures
    • Change management
    • Onboarding/offboarding
    • Playbooks

  • External considerations
    • Regulatory
    • Legal
    • Industry
    • Local/regional
    • National
    • Global
  • Monitoring and revision
  • Types of governance structures
    • Boards
    • Committees
    • Government entities
    • Centralized/decentralized
  • Roles and responsibilities for systems and data
    • Owners
    • Controllers
    • Processors
    • Custodians/stewards

5.2 Explain elements of the risk management process

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  • Risk identification
  • Risk assessment
    • Ad hoc
    • Recurring
    • One-time
    • Continuous
  • Risk analysis
    • Qualitative
    • Quantitative
    • Single loss expectancy (SLE)
    • Annualized loss expectancy (ALE)
    • Annualized rate of occurrence (ARO)
    • Probability
    • Likelihood
    • Exposure factor
    • Impact
  • Risk register
    • Key risk indicators
    • Risk owners
    • Risk threshold

  • Risk tolerance
  • Risk appetite
    • Expansionary
    • Conservative
    • Neutral
  • Risk management strategies
    • Transfer
    • Accept
      • Exemption
      • Exception
    • Avoid
    • Mitigate
  • Risk reporting
  • Business impact analysis
    • Recovery time objective (RTO)
    • Recovery point objective (RPO)
    • Mean time to repair (MTTR)
    • Mean time between failures (MTBF)

5.3 Explain the processes associated with third-party risk assessment and management.

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  • Vendor assessment
    • Penetration testing
    • Right-to-audit clause
    • Evidence of internal audits
    • Independent assessments
    • Supply chain analysis
  • Vendor selection
    • Due diligence
    • Conflict of interest

  • Agreement types
    • Service-level agreement (SLA)
    • Memorandum of agreement (MOA)
    • Memorandum of understanding (MOU)
    • Master service agreement (MSA)
    • Work order (WO)/statement of work (SOW)
    • Non-disclosure agreement (NDA)
    • Business partners agreement (BPA)
  • Vendor monitoring
  • Questionnaires
  • Rules of engagement

5.4 Summarize elements of effective security compliance.

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  • Compliance reporting
    • Internal
    • External
  • Consequences of non-compliance
    • Fines
    • Sanctions
    • Reputational damage
    • Loss of license
    • Contractual impacts
  • Compliance monitoring
    • Due diligence/care
    • Attestation and acknowledgement
    • Internal and external
    • Automation

  • Privacy
    • Legal implications
      • Local/regional
      • National
      • Global
    • Data subject
    • Controller vs. processor
    • Ownership
    • Data inventory and retention
    • Right to be forgotten

5.5 Explain types and purposes of audits and assessments.

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  • Attestation
  • Internal
    • Compliance
    • Audit committee
    • Self-assessments
  • External
    • Regulatory
    • Examinations
    • Assessment
    • Independent third-party audit

  • Penetration testing
    • Physical
    • Offensive
    • Defensive
    • Integrated
    • Known environment
    • Partially known environment
    • Unknown environment
    • Reconnaissance
      • Passive
      • Active

5.6 Given a scenario, implement security awareness practices.

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  • Phishing
    • Campaigns
    • Recognizing a phishing attempt
    • Responding to reported suspicious messages
  • Anomalous behavior recognition
    • Risky
    • Unexpected
    • Unintentional

  • User guidance and training
    • Policy/handbooks
    • Situational awareness
    • Insider threat
    • Password management
    • Removable media and cables
    • Social engineering
    • Operational security
    • Hybrid/remote work environments
  • Reporting and monitoring
    • Initial
    • Recurring
  • Development
  • Execution