CSA Network and Security Administration 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which authentication protocol sends credentials in plaintext and should never be used over untrusted networks?
- LDAP over TLS
- Kerberos
- PAP (Correct answer)
- CHAP
Correct answer: PAP
PAP (Password Authentication Protocol) transmits usernames and passwords in cleartext, making it vulnerable to interception.
Question 2: What does the 'least privilege' security principle require?
- Admins must use shared accounts
- Users receive only the minimum access needed for their role (Correct answer)
- Passwords must be at least 12 characters
- All systems must use two-factor authentication
Correct answer: Users receive only the minimum access needed for their role
Least privilege limits each user or process to only the permissions required to perform their function, reducing the attack surface.
Question 3: A subnet has the address 192.168.10.0/26. How many usable host addresses does it provide?
- 30
- 62 (Correct answer)
- 126
- 254
Correct answer: 62
A /26 subnet has 64 total addresses (2^6), minus 2 for network and broadcast, leaving 62 usable host addresses.
Question 4: Which log file on a Linux system records successful and failed authentication attempts?
- /var/log/syslog
- /var/log/auth.log (Correct answer)
- /var/log/kern.log
- /var/log/dmesg
Correct answer: /var/log/auth.log
/var/log/auth.log (or /var/log/secure on RHEL-based systems) captures PAM, sudo, and SSH authentication events.
Question 5: What is the main function of a Certificate Authority (CA) in a PKI environment?
- Generate symmetric encryption keys
- Issue and sign digital certificates to verify identity (Correct answer)
- Store private keys for all users
- Encrypt email messages end-to-end
Correct answer: Issue and sign digital certificates to verify identity
A CA is a trusted entity that issues digital certificates and digitally signs them to verify the identity of certificate holders.
Question 6: Which protocol is used to synchronize system clocks across a network, which is critical for log correlation and Kerberos authentication?
- SNMP
- NTP (Correct answer)
- LDAP
- RADIUS
Correct answer: NTP
NTP (Network Time Protocol) synchronizes clocks across systems; Kerberos requires clocks within 5 minutes of each other to prevent replay attacks.
Question 7: An administrator wants to monitor device health metrics like CPU load and interface errors across the network. Which protocol is most commonly used?
- SMTP
- SNMP (Correct answer)
- IMAP
- SIP
Correct answer: SNMP
SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol) is the standard protocol for collecting and managing performance and status data from network devices.
CSA Network and Security Administration 3
Which authentication protocol sends credentials in plaintext and should never be used over untrusted networks?