Eccouncil ICS-SCADA Exam Questions

Information management within the context of network security involves several critical functions that ensure data is correctly handled for security operations. These functions include:

Normalization: This process standardizes data formats from various sources to a common format, making it easier to analyze systematically.

Correlation: This function identifies relationships between disparate pieces of data, helping to identify patterns or potential security incidents.

Data enrichment: Adds context to the collected data, enhancing the information with additional details, such as threat intelligence.

All these functions are essential to effective information management in security systems, allowing for more accurate monitoring and faster response to potential threats.

Reference

'Data Enrichment and Correlation in SIEM Systems,' Security Information Management Best Practices.

'Normalization Techniques for Security Data,' Journal of Network Security.

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) typically requires two Security Associations (SAs) for a secure communication session. One SA is used for inbound traffic, and the other for outbound traffic.

In the context of IPsec, which is often used to secure VPN connections, these two SAs facilitate the bidirectional secure exchange of packets in a VPN tunnel.

Each SA uniquely defines how traffic should be securely processed, including the encryption and authentication mechanisms. This ensures that data sent in one direction is handled independently from data sent in the opposite direction, maintaining the integrity and confidentiality of both communication streams.

Reference

'Understanding IPSec VPNs,' by Cisco Systems.

'IPsec Security Associations,' RFC 4301, Security Architecture for the Internet Protocol.

The Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) uses several metrics to assess the severity of vulnerabilities. Among them, the Temporal metric group specifically reflects the exploit quotient of a vulnerability.

Temporal metrics consider factors that change over time after a vulnerability is initially assessed. These include:

Exploit Code Maturity: This assesses the likelihood of the vulnerability being exploited based on the availability and maturity of exploit code.

Remediation Level: The level of remediation available for the vulnerability, which influences the ease of mitigation.

Report Confidence: This metric measures the reliability of the reports about the vulnerability.

These temporal factors directly affect the exploitability and potential threat posed by a vulnerability, adjusting the base score to provide a more current view of the risk.

Reference

Common Vulnerability Scoring System v3.1: User Guide.

'Understanding CVSS,' by FIRST (Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams).

The third generation of ICS/SCADA systems is considered distributed. This generation features systems that are networked and interconnected, typically using a variety of standard communication protocols. This distribution allows for broader connectivity and integration with other systems, enhancing operational flexibility and efficiency but also introducing more vectors for potential cyber threats. Reference:

Joseph Weiss, 'Protecting Industrial Control Systems from Electronic Threats'.

The third generation of ICS/SCADA systems is considered distributed. These systems emerged in the late 1990s and early 2000s and were designed to overcome the limitations of earlier generations by leveraging networked architectures.

Distributed Architecture: Third-generation systems distributed control functions across multiple interconnected devices and systems, providing greater scalability and flexibility.

Network Integration: These systems integrated more extensively with IT networks, allowing for remote monitoring and control.

Standard Protocols: Adoption of standard communication protocols (e.g., Ethernet, TCP/IP) facilitated interoperability and integration with other systems.

Enhanced Redundancy: Improved fault tolerance and redundancy were implemented to ensure system reliability.

Due to these features, the third generation is known as the distributed generation.

Reference

'SCADA Systems,' SCADAHacker, SCADA Generations.

Modbus TCP is a variant of the Modbus family of simple, networked protocols aimed at industrial automation applications. Unlike the original Modbus protocol, which runs over serial links, Modbus TCP runs over TCP/IP networks.

Port 502 is the standard TCP port used for Modbus TCP communications. This port is designated for Modbus messages encapsulated in a TCP/IP wrapper, facilitating communication between Modbus devices and management systems over an IP network.

Knowing the correct port number is crucial for network configuration, security settings, and troubleshooting communications within a Modbus-enabled ICS/SCADA environment.

Reference

Modbus Organization, 'MODBUS Application Protocol Specification V1.1b3'.

'Modbus TCP/IP -- A Comprehensive Network protocol,' by Schneider Electric.