Personal Security & Situational Awareness Flashcards
7 cards from real CFA practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Personal Security & Situational Awareness flashcards as text
Which level of Cooper's Color Code represents a relaxed but alert state appropriate for everyday field operations?
Answer: Yellow
Condition Yellow is a state of relaxed alertness where the individual is aware of their surroundings without fixating on a specific threat.
A field agent discovers their hotel room has been searched while they were away. What should they do FIRST?
Answer: Leave the room immediately and do not touch anything, then report the incident
Leaving the room untouched preserves potential forensic evidence and prevents triggering any devices that may have been left behind, followed by immediate reporting.
Social engineering attacks most commonly target field agents through:
Answer: Exploitation of trust, authority, or urgency to extract sensitive information
Social engineering manipulates human psychology—using trust, authority, or urgency—to bypass security measures without technical means.
What does 'TEDD' stand for in surveillance detection?
Answer: Time, Environment, Distance, and Demeanor
TEDD—Time, Environment, Distance, and Demeanor—is a framework used to identify whether someone may be conducting surveillance on an individual.
An agent at an overseas post receives a phone call from someone claiming to be from their home agency's IT department requesting login credentials. The correct response is to:
Answer: Verify the caller's identity through official channels before providing any information
Legitimate agency IT personnel never request credentials over the phone; verifying identity through official channels prevents vishing (voice phishing) attacks.
Which technique helps a field agent confirm they are being followed during foot movement?
Answer: Using a surveillance detection route (SDR) with choke points to confirm surveillance
A surveillance detection route uses deliberate movements through specific choke points where it would be operationally difficult for surveillance to follow undetected without revealing themselves.
Which of the following best describes the concept of 'minimal digital footprint' for field agents?
Answer: Reducing the amount of personally identifiable information available in open sources
A minimal digital footprint means limiting the amount of personally identifiable information available to adversaries through open-source intelligence gathering.