Security+ Certification/Objectives/Threats, Vulnerabilities, and Mitigations

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