CND CND Endpoint Security & Hardening 1

Question 1

What is the primary goal of OS hardening in a network defender's role?

Accepted Answer

Reduce the attack surface by disabling unnecessary services and features

Answer

OS hardening removes or disables unused services, accounts, and features, reducing the number of potential vulnerabilities an attacker can exploit.

Question 2

Which security benchmark is widely used as a baseline for endpoint hardening configurations?

Accepted Answer

CIS Benchmarks

Answer

CIS (Center for Internet Security) Benchmarks provide prescriptive, consensus-based hardening guidelines for operating systems, applications, and network devices.

Question 3

What is the purpose of application whitelisting on endpoints?

Accepted Answer

Permit only pre-approved applications to execute, blocking all others

Answer

Application whitelisting enforces a default-deny policy, allowing only explicitly approved programs to run and blocking all unknown or unauthorized executables.

Question 4

Which Windows feature uses virtualization to protect the integrity of the OS kernel from rootkits?

Accepted Answer

Virtualization-Based Security (VBS) / Hypervisor-Protected Code Integrity (HVCI)

Answer

VBS with HVCI uses hardware virtualization to isolate kernel code integrity checks in a protected environment, preventing kernel-level rootkits from tampering with the OS.

Question 5

What does EDR (Endpoint Detection and Response) provide beyond traditional antivirus?

Accepted Answer

Continuous behavioral monitoring, threat hunting, and incident response capabilities

Answer

EDR solutions monitor endpoint behavior continuously, detect anomalies indicative of advanced threats, and provide tools for investigation and remediation.

(CND) Certified Network Defender Practice Test

(CND) Certified Network Defender Practice Test

CND CND Endpoint Security & Hardening 1