Practice Test Geeks(ICS) Industrial Control Systems Security Certification Practice Test
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SCADA & Industrial Protocol Security Flashcards

7 cards from real ICS practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.

Read the first 7 SCADA & Industrial Protocol Security flashcards as text

  1. What is a Remote Terminal Unit (RTU) in a SCADA architecture?

    Answer: A field device that interfaces with sensors and actuators and communicates data to the SCADA master station

    An RTU is a microprocessor-based field device that collects data from local sensors and actuators and relays it to the SCADA master station, and can execute commands received from the master.

  2. In OT security, which property is typically prioritized above the traditional IT security triad?

    Answer: Availability

    In OT/ICS environments, availability is the top priority because downtime can cause safety incidents, environmental harm, or major economic loss, unlike most IT environments where confidentiality often takes precedence.

  3. What is 'air gapping' as a security measure in ICS environments?

    Answer: Physically isolating a network so it has no direct connection to external or corporate networks

    Air gapping means physically separating an ICS network from all other networks, including the internet and corporate IT networks, eliminating the electronic attack path.

  4. The Purdue Model (also known as PERA) is used in ICS security to:

    Answer: Establish a hierarchical reference model for organizing ICS network segments into levels

    The Purdue Model organizes ICS infrastructure into five hierarchical levels — from field devices at Level 0 up to enterprise systems at Level 4 — providing a framework for applying security controls at each layer.

  5. Which cyberweapon specifically targeted Siemens S7-series PLCs and caused physical damage to uranium enrichment centrifuges?

    Answer: Stuxnet

    Stuxnet was a sophisticated worm, discovered in 2010, that specifically targeted Siemens Step 7 software and S7-315/S7-417 PLCs to manipulate centrifuge speeds at Iran's Natanz facility while reporting normal operation to operators.

  6. What is the primary cybersecurity risk introduced when connecting an OT/ICS network to a corporate IT network?

    Answer: Expanded attack surface allowing threats and malware to propagate from the IT environment into the OT environment

    IT-OT convergence expands the attack surface because threats present in the corporate IT network — ransomware, spear-phishing, compromised credentials — can pivot into the less-secured OT environment.

  7. Which ICS-specific malware targeted the Ukrainian power grid in 2015 and 2016, causing widespread blackouts?

    Answer: BlackEnergy / Industroyer

    BlackEnergy was used in the 2015 attack and Industroyer (also called Crashoverride) was deployed in the 2016 attack, both targeting Ukrainian electric grid SCADA systems to cause power outages affecting hundreds of thousands of customers.