Top Security Testing Interview Questions
The constant emergence of cyberattacks has made system security a major concern. Identifying and evaluating system vulnerabilities has become quite important for businesses. In such a situation, integrating security testing has become quite essential for organizations. Security testing is the most crucial type of testing conducted to find vulnerabilities in the organization’s security mechanism that safeguards the data. If you are applying for jobs in security testing, then you need to get ready for the interview. In this article, we will go over the top security testing interview questions and answers that will enable you to ace the interview.
Let us discuss the most important security testing interview questions and answers.
1. Define security testing.
Security testing evaluates the security of a system, application, or network infrastructure to identify weaknesses, vulnerabilities, bugs, and potential threats. It involves conducting various tests, assessments, and simulations to detect security flaws and assess the effectiveness of security controls and countermeasures.
2. What are the attributes of security testing?
Security testing has the following seven attributes:
- Authorization
- Authentication
- Availability
- Confidentiality
- Integrity
- Non-repudiation
- Resilience
3. Explain the term vulnerability.
Vulnerability is a weakness or flaw in an IT system, network, or other resources that can be exploited to gain unauthorized access. Any intruder or bug can quickly attack the system due to its vulnerability. Using the vulnerability, an attacker can run malicious code, set up malware, or steal confidential information.
4. What are the factors that may cause vulnerabilities?
The following factors can cause vulnerabilities:
- Design flaws: System vulnerabilities can allow hackers to attack systems quickly due to design flaws.
- Passwords: Hackers can quickly obtain the information if they know the password.
- Poor and complex coding: Complex and poorly implemented code can cause vulnerabilities in software systems.
- Management: Inadequate data management can lead to many vulnerabilities.
- Human Error: Human errors are the most common vulnerabilities cause.
5. Define the Intrusion Detection System.
An Intrusion Detection System (IDS) is a software application that monitors network traffic and looks for malicious or unusual activity within the network. It notifies the IT and security teams when any security threats and risks are found.
6. What are the different types of Intrusion Detection Systems?
There are five main Intrusion Detection Systems:
- Host Intrusion Detection System (HIDS)
- Network Intrusion Detection System (NIDS)
- Network Node Intrusion Detection System (NNIDS)
- Protocol-based Intrusion Detection System (PIDS)
- Application Protocol-based Intrusion Detection System (APIDS)
7. What are the three types of intruders?
The three types of intruders are:
- Masquerader: An unauthorized user who penetrates a system and takes advantage of a legitimate user’s account.
- Misfeasor: A legitimate user who makes illegal access or abuses his rights.
- Clandestine user: An individual who compromises the system’s supervisory control and access controls.
8. What does “SQL injection” mean?
SQL injection is a typical hacking technique used by attackers or malicious hackers to gain access to sensitive data. SQL injection attack is an injection attack in which hackers attempt to exploit system flaws and then inject malicious SQL commands into data-plane input to alter the execution of predefined SQL commands.
9. List the various techniques for security testing.
The following are the security testing techniques:
- White Box: In this testing method, the testers are given complete information about the target.
- Black Box: In this method, the testers are given no information and are free to test the system in a real-world environment.
- Grey Box: In this method, only partial information is available to the testers, and the rest they have to test independently.
10. What is Cross-site Scripting (XSS)?
Cross-site Scripting (XSS) is a vulnerability used by hackers to target web applications. It enables a hacker to inject malicious executable scripts into the source code of a trusted program or website.
11. Explain the term penetration testing.
A penetration test is a process in which an ethical hacker identifies security vulnerabilities in a target application, network, or system. It assists in resolving them before attackers discover and exploit them. In this testing, both manual and automatic methodologies are used to detect system vulnerabilities.
12 . According to the Open Source Security Testing Methodology Manual, what are the seven main types of security testing?
Types of security testing, as per the Open Source Security Testing Methodology Manual, are:
- Ethical hacking
- Penetration testing
- Risk assessment
- Security auditing
- Security scanning
- Vulnerability scanning
- Posture assessment
13. What is the difference between an SSL connection and an SSL session?
SSL connection: An SSL (Secure Socket Layer) connection is a temporary connection used to establish peer-to-peer communication. There is only one SSL session in each of these connections.
SSL session: An SSL session is a connection between a client and a server, and these connections use almost a handshake networking protocol.
14. What components are used in SSL?
SSL stands for Secure Socket Layer. The components used in SSL are:
- SSL recorded protocol
- Encryption algorithms
- Handshake protocols
- Change cipher spec
15. What are the parameters that make up an SSL session state?
The following parameters define an SSL session’s state:
- Session identifier
- Peer certificate
- Compression method
- Cipher spec
- Master secret
- Client random
- Server random
16. What are the two most frequent password file protection methods?
Two typical methods for securing a password file are:
- Hashed passwords
- Salt value or password file access control
17. Define SOAP and WSDL.
SOAP: SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) is an XML-based protocol that is used for communication between various applications and services.
WSDL: WSDL (Web Service Description Language) is an XML-based language that describes web services and how to use them.
18. What is file enumeration?
File enumeration is a technique for detecting the existence or validity of suspicious files and parameter values. This type of attack involves forceful surfing with the URL manipulation attack.
19. What are the most commonly used software security abbreviations and full forms?
The most commonly used abbreviations in the software security field are:
- BONDING – Bandwidth On Demand Interoperability Group
- COPS – Common Open Policy Service
- CHAP – Challenge Handshake Authentication Protocol
- DBA – Dynamic Bandwidth Allocation
- DDS – Digital Data System
- DES – Data Encryption Standard
- FTP – File Transfer Protocol
- GOSIP – Government Open Systems Interconnection Profile
- IPsec – Internet Protocol Security
- ISDN – Integrated Services Digital Network
- OSI – Open Systems Interconnection
- SSH – Secure Shell
- TLS – Transport Layer Security
- USM – User-based Security Model
20. What is HIDS?
HIDS stands for Host-based Intrusion Detection System, and it’s a program that monitors or analyzes a computer or network for suspicious activity.
21. Define URL manipulation.
When a hacker manipulates the URL content in the browser’s location bar to probe a website, this is known as a URL manipulation attack. Hackers change the URL of a website to gain access to sensitive data.
22. What is port scanning, and what are the different types of port scans?
Port scanning is the process of searching the system’s loopholes by scanning the ports. Ports are the points where data enters and exits a system.
Following are the types of port scans:
- Strobe
- UDP
- Vanilla
- Sweep
- Fragmented packets
- Stealth scan
- FTP bounce
How can InfosecTrain help you?
With licensed and experienced instructors, InfosecTrain is one of the top leading IT security training and certification providers that is appreciated by professionals and consumers worldwide. Enroll in one of InfosecTrain’s security testing courses. By taking these courses, you will gain the necessary skills to test current IT systems and identify the most effective security measures to safeguard the organization against potential risks. They will strengthen your foundation, give you in-depth industry knowledge and help you develop new skills. Some of the best security testing training courses we provide are Advanced Penetration Testing, Network Penetration Testing and Web Application Penetration Testing.
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