Free ECCouncil 312-39 Practice Exam with Questions & Answers | Set: 2

The type of threat intelligence that helps in understanding adversary intent and making informed decisions to ensure appropriate security in alignment with risk is known as Strategic Threat Intelligence. This form of intelligence is concerned with the broader goals and motivations of threat actors, as well as the long-term trends and implications of their activities. It provides insights into the cyber threat landscape and helps organizations shape their security strategy and policies to mitigate risks.

Strategic Threat Intelligence is used to inform decision-makers about the nature of threats, the potential impact on the organization, and the necessary steps to align security measures with business objectives. It is less technical than Tactical or Operational Threat Intelligence and does not focus on the specific details of attacks or the technical indicators of compromise. Instead, it provides a high-level view of the threats and their relevance to the organization’s risk management.

References: The information provided aligns with the EC-Council’s Certified Threat Intelligence Analyst (C|TIA) program, which covers the use of threat intelligence in SOC operations and the integration of threat intelligence into risk management processes1. Additionally, the distinction between different types of threat intelligence, such as Tactical, Strategic, and Operational, is well-documented in the cybersecurity community and can be found in various threat intelligence resources23.

Black hole filtering is a network security measure used to prevent unwanted or malicious traffic from entering a network. It works by directing traffic to a null interface, a non-existent server, or a black hole IP address where the packets are dropped without acknowledgment. This process is typically used to protect against denial-of-service (DoS) attacks, where an overwhelming amount of traffic is sent to a network with the intent to disrupt service.

In the context of a security operations center (SOC), black hole filtering can be an effective strategy for mitigating threats. When a threat is identified, such as a DoS attack, the SOC analyst can configure the network to redirect the suspicious traffic to a black hole, effectively neutralizing the attack by preventing the malicious data packets from reaching their intended target.

References: The EC-Council’s Certified SOC Analyst (C|SA) program covers various defensive strategies, including black hole filtering, as part of its curriculum for Tier I and Tier II SOC analysts. The program emphasizes the importance of understanding and implementing network security measures to protect against cyber threats12.

The primary step in containing a malware incident is to isolate the infected machine to prevent the malware from spreading to other systems. This can be done by disconnecting it from the network and turning it off. This action helps to contain the incident and allows for a proper investigation without the risk of further infection or data loss.

References: The EC-Council’s Certified SOC Analyst (CSA) program emphasizes the importance of quick response to security incidents, including malware infections. The training includes understanding security threats, attacks, vulnerabilities, and the appropriate responses to such incidents. The CSA program also covers the procedures for incident response, which includes the containment strategies for incidents like malware outbreaks123.

CrowdStrike FalconTM Orchestrator is a tool designed to automate the response to security incidents, including those involving web applications. It integrates with the CrowdStrike Falcon platform to provide a range of capabilities such as real-time response, incident investigation, and remediation. This makes it suitable for recovering from web application incidents by allowing security teams to quickly identify, understand, and resolve threats.

References The EC-Council’s Certified SOC Analyst (CSA) course materials and study guides discuss various tools and their applications in incident response. CrowdStrike FalconTM Orchestrator is recognized in the industry for its incident response capabilities, aligning with the learning resources provided by EC-Council for SOC Analysts.

In a self-hosted, MSSP (Managed Security Service Provider) managed SIEM deployment architecture, the organization retains the SIEM infrastructure within its own premises or private cloud (hence "self-hosted"), but outsources the management, monitoring, and analysis functions to an MSSP. This model allows the organization to have control over the log collection process, ensuring that sensitive data does not leave the organization's environment, while still benefiting from the expertise and resources of an MSSP for the more complex and resource-intensive aspects of SIEM operation. This approach is particularly suitable for organizations that have specific requirements for data sovereignty or industry regulations that restrict data handling but still want to leverage external expertise for security analytics and incident management.

References:

• "Managed Security Services: The CISO's Guide to Outsourcing Security", SANS Institute.
• "Choosing the Right SIEM Deployment Model", SecurityWeek.

Web services attacks can be mitigated by filtering improper XML syntax because these attacks often exploit vulnerabilities in web services that accept XML input. XML filtering ensures that only properly formatted XML data is processed by the web service. This can prevent various forms of XML-related attacks, such as XML injection or XML External Entity (XXE) attacks, where attackers attempt to interfere with the processing of XML data.

References: The EC-Council’s Certified SOC Analyst (CSA) program covers the fundamentals of SOC operations, including the identification and validation of intrusion attempts, and the use of SIEM solutions for enhanced threat detection. The program emphasizes the importance of understanding the various types of attacks and the appropriate defensive measures, including the filtering of improper XML syntax to protect against web services attacks12.

A false negative incident in the context of a Security Operations Center (SOC) is when an actual attack or intrusion occurs, but the SOC analyst fails to detect any suspicious events or indicators of compromise. This means that the security measures in place did not work as intended, and the attack went unnoticed.

In David’s case, since an attack was initiated and he was not able to find any suspicious events, it is categorized as a false negative incident. This is a critical type of incident because it indicates a failure in the detection capabilities of the SOC, potentially allowing the intruder to cause harm without being detected.

References: The categorization of incidents is a fundamental part of the SOC Analyst’s role, as outlined in the EC-Council’s Certified SOC Analyst (CSA) training and certification program. The program covers the different types of incidents that can be encountered in a SOC, including true positives, false positives, true negatives, and false negatives, and how to identify and respond to each12345.

User and Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA) is a cybersecurity process that uses machine learning, algorithms, and statistical analyses to detect abnormal behavior of users and entities within an organization. UEBA systems analyze patterns of behavior and can identify anomalies that deviate from the norm, which could indicate a potential security threat.

Anomaly-based detection is the technique that aligns with UEBA’s functionality. It contrasts with:

• Rule-based detection, which relies on predefined rules to detect threats.
• Heuristic-based detection, which uses experience-based techniques.
• Signature-based detection, which depends on known patterns or signatures of malware to identify threats.

Anomaly-based detection systems are designed to be dynamic, continuously learning and establishing what is considered normal to identify deviations. This approach is particularly effective in identifying previously unknown threats, hence its alignment with UEBA.

References: The EC-Council’s Certified SOC Analyst (CSA) program covers the fundamentals of SOC operations, including incident detection with Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) and enhanced incident detection with Threat Intelligence, which encompasses the use of UEBA for anomaly detection123.

The Task Category in Windows logs is used to define the type of event that has occurred. It is a subcategory within the event itself that provides additional context about the event, such as whether it is a Correlation Hint, Response Time, SQM, WDI Context, etc. This categorization helps in filtering and identifying events based on their nature and type.

References: The information is verified as per the SOC Analyst documents and learning resources provided by EC-Council, which emphasize the importance of understanding log management and correlation within a SOC environment12. Additionally, the definition and role of the Task Category field in Windows logs are supported by technical documentation and resources that describe the structure and use of Windows event logs34.