SSCP Cryptography & PKI 5

Question 1

What attack exploits the mathematical relationship between RSA public and private keys when the same message is encrypted with multiple public keys sharing a common modulus?

Accepted Answer

Common modulus attack

Answer

The common modulus attack allows recovery of plaintext when the same message is encrypted under RSA keys that share a modulus but have coprime exponents.

Question 2

Which standard defines the format for X.509 digital certificates used in PKI?

Accepted Answer

RFC 5280

Answer

RFC 5280 defines the Internet X.509 Public Key Infrastructure Certificate and CRL Profile used for TLS and other PKI applications.

Question 3

An organization needs to encrypt data at rest on a hardware security module (HSM). What is the main advantage of using an HSM?

Accepted Answer

Keys are generated and stored in tamper-resistant hardware, never exposed in software

Answer

HSMs store and operate on cryptographic keys within tamper-resistant hardware, so private keys never exist in unprotected software memory.

Question 4

Which of the following describes a man-in-the-middle (MitM) attack in the context of key exchange?

Accepted Answer

An attacker intercepts and substitutes public keys during the exchange

Answer

In a MitM key exchange attack, the adversary substitutes their own public key for each party's, allowing them to decrypt and re-encrypt all traffic.

Question 5

What is the difference between transport mode and tunnel mode in IPsec?

Accepted Answer

Transport mode encrypts the payload only; tunnel mode encrypts the entire IP packet including headers

Answer

IPsec transport mode protects only the payload while tunnel mode encapsulates and encrypts the original IP packet inside a new IP packet.

(SSCP) Systems Security Certified Practitioner Exam Practice Test

(SSCP) Systems Security Certified Practitioner Exam Practice Test

SSCP Cryptography & PKI 5