SE Identity and Access Management 2

Question 1

Which federation protocol is most commonly used for SSO between web applications using XML-based assertions?

Accepted Answer

SAML 2.0

Answer

SAML 2.0 uses XML-based security assertions to pass authentication and authorization data between identity providers and service providers.

Question 2

What is the difference between authentication and authorization?

Accepted Answer

Authentication verifies identity; authorization determines what the identity is permitted to do

Answer

Authentication answers 'who are you?', while authorization answers 'what are you allowed to do?' — they are distinct and sequential processes.

Question 3

Which Kerberos component issues Ticket Granting Tickets (TGTs) after initial user authentication?

Accepted Answer

Key Distribution Center (KDC) / Authentication Server (AS)

Answer

The Authentication Server (AS) within the KDC validates the user's credentials and issues a TGT that the user presents to get service tickets.

Question 4

A security engineer reviews access logs and finds a service account with domain admin rights that hasn't logged in for 180 days. What is the recommended action?

Accepted Answer

Immediately disable and review the account's necessity and permissions

Answer

Dormant privileged accounts are a major attack surface; they should be disabled and reviewed for least-privilege compliance.

Question 5

Which access control model uses security labels and clearance levels to make access decisions, typically in government systems?

Accepted Answer

Mandatory Access Control (MAC)

Answer

MAC enforces access based on sensitivity labels (e.g., Top Secret, Secret) assigned to both subjects and objects by a central authority.

SE - Security Engineer Practice Test

SE - Security Engineer Practice Test

SE Identity and Access Management 2