CDP Cheat Sheet 2026

The 30 highest-yield CDP facts, distilled from real exam questions. Print it, save it as a PDF, or study it here — free, no sign-up.

1. At which stage of a CI/CD pipeline should vulnerability scanning ideally first be integrated? → During code commit and pull request creation
2. How does incident response improve security in DevSecOps? → Ensures security breaches are identified, contained, and mitigated
3. In the STRIDE threat model, what does the letter 'T' represent? → Tampering
4. What is the primary purpose of a runbook in incident response? → To provide step-by-step procedures for handling specific incident types
5. How does continuing education relate to incident response & disaster recovery for CDP certified professionals? → It ensures professionals stay current with evolving standards and best practices
6. Which practice helps developers find and fix security issues before code is merged? → Security-focused code review (peer review)
7. When implementing incident response & disaster recovery practices, what should a CDP professional prioritize first? → Compliance with established standards and protocols
8. Container image signing and verification using tools like Cosign or Notary helps ensure: → Only trusted, unmodified images are deployed in the cluster
9. Under HIPAA Security Rule, which safeguard category addresses workstation use policies and physical access to servers? → Physical safeguards
10. Why is automation important in DevSecOps? → Reduces manual errors and accelerates the development process
11. What is a 'container image vulnerability scan' designed to detect? → Known CVEs in OS packages and libraries bundled in a container image
12. What is 'threat modeling' in the context of DevSecOps? → Systematically identifying potential threats and mitigations during design
13. What is the scoring range for CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System) base scores? → 0.0 to 10.0
14. Which quality improvement method is most applicable to security architecture & network defense in Certified DevSecOps Professional? → Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) continuous improvement cycle
15. A Kubernetes PodSecurityContext setting `readOnlyRootFilesystem: true` helps security by: → Stopping attackers from writing malicious files to the container filesystem
16. What is a common challenge professionals face when applying incident response & disaster recovery principles in Certified DevSecOps Professional? → Balancing theoretical knowledge with practical application
17. In a risk register, what does 'residual risk' represent? → Risk that remains after controls have been applied
18. What is a common risk of using overly broad IAM roles for CI/CD pipeline service accounts? → A compromised pipeline can access and modify unintended cloud resources
19. What does 'shift-left' security mean in the context of DevSecOps? → Integrating security testing and practices earlier in the software development lifecycle
20. Why is vulnerability management crucial in DevSecOps? → Reduces the likelihood of exploitation by attackers
21. How should a CDP professional handle a situation where cloud infrastructure & deployment protocols conflict with practical constraints? → Document the conflict and seek guidance from appropriate authorities
22. What is the National Vulnerability Database (NVD) primarily used for in vulnerability management? → Enriching CVE records with CVSS severity scores and additional metadata
23. Which tool category performs Static Application Security Testing (SAST)? → Source code analyzers
24. What is security automation in DevSecOps? → Using tools and scripts to automatically perform security tasks
25. Which metric measures how long an attacker remains in an environment before detection, directly reflecting monitoring program gaps? → Dwell time (Mean Time to Detect)
26. Which anomaly detection technique is best suited for detecting insider threats in a DevSecOps environment? → User and Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA)
27. In DevSecOps, what does a 'risk appetite statement' formally define? → The level and type of risk an organization is willing to accept in pursuit of objectives
28. Which technology trend is most likely to impact cloud infrastructure & deployment in the CDP field in coming years? → Digital tools for enhanced data collection, analysis, and reporting
29. What is a common challenge professionals face when applying automation & scripting fundamentals principles in Certified DevSecOps Professional? → Balancing theoretical knowledge with practical application
30. Which attack technique involves exploiting a vulnerability inside a container to gain access to the host operating system? → Container escape