SSCP Exam Question 371
Which of the following is related to physical security and is not considered a technical control?
Correct Answer: D
Explanation/Reference:
All of the above are considered technical controls except for locks, which are physical controls.
Administrative, Technical, and Physical Security Controls
Administrative security controls are primarily policies and procedures put into place to define and guide employee actions in dealing with the organization's sensitive information. For example, policy might dictate (and procedures indicate how) that human resources conduct background checks on employees with access to sensitive information. Requiring that information be classified and the process to classify and review information classifications is another example of an administrative control. The organization security awareness program is an administrative control used to make employees cognizant of their security roles and responsibilities. Note that administrative security controls in the form of a policy can be enforced or verified with technical or physical security controls. For instance, security policy may state that computers without antivirus software cannot connect to the network, but a technical control, such as network access control software, will check for antivirus software when a computer tries to attach to the network.
Technical security controls (also called logical controls) are devices, processes, protocols, and other measures used to protect the C.I.A. of sensitive information. Examples include logical access systems, encryptions systems, antivirus systems, firewalls, and intrusion detection systems.
Physical security controls are devices and means to control physical access to sensitive information and to protect the availability of the information. Examples are physical access systems (fences, mantraps, guards), physical intrusion detection systems (motion detector, alarm system), and physical protection systems (sprinklers, backup generator). Administrative and technical controls depend on proper physical security controls being in place. An administrative policy allowing only authorized employees access to the data center do little good without some kind of physical access control.
From the GIAC.ORG website
All of the above are considered technical controls except for locks, which are physical controls.
Administrative, Technical, and Physical Security Controls
Administrative security controls are primarily policies and procedures put into place to define and guide employee actions in dealing with the organization's sensitive information. For example, policy might dictate (and procedures indicate how) that human resources conduct background checks on employees with access to sensitive information. Requiring that information be classified and the process to classify and review information classifications is another example of an administrative control. The organization security awareness program is an administrative control used to make employees cognizant of their security roles and responsibilities. Note that administrative security controls in the form of a policy can be enforced or verified with technical or physical security controls. For instance, security policy may state that computers without antivirus software cannot connect to the network, but a technical control, such as network access control software, will check for antivirus software when a computer tries to attach to the network.
Technical security controls (also called logical controls) are devices, processes, protocols, and other measures used to protect the C.I.A. of sensitive information. Examples include logical access systems, encryptions systems, antivirus systems, firewalls, and intrusion detection systems.
Physical security controls are devices and means to control physical access to sensitive information and to protect the availability of the information. Examples are physical access systems (fences, mantraps, guards), physical intrusion detection systems (motion detector, alarm system), and physical protection systems (sprinklers, backup generator). Administrative and technical controls depend on proper physical security controls being in place. An administrative policy allowing only authorized employees access to the data center do little good without some kind of physical access control.
From the GIAC.ORG website
SSCP Exam Question 372
What can be defined as a table of subjects and objects indicating what actions individual subjects can take upon individual objects?
Correct Answer: C
Explanation/Reference:
The matrix lists the users, groups and roles down the left side and the resources and functions across the top. The cells of the matrix can either indicate that access is allowed or indicate the type of access. CBK pp 317 - 318.
AIO3, p. 169 describes it as a table if subjects and objects specifying the access rights a certain subject possesses pertaining to specific objects.
In either case, the matrix is a way of analyzing the access control needed by a population of subjects to a population of objects. This access control can be applied using rules, ACL's, capability tables, etc.
"A capacity table" is incorrect.
This answer is a trap for the unwary -- it sounds a little like "capability table" but is just there to distract you.
"An access control list" is incorrect.
"It [ACL] specifies a list of users [subjects] who are allowed access to each object" CBK, p. 188 Access control lists (ACL) could be used to implement the rules identified by an access control matrix but is different from the matrix itself.
"A capability table" is incorrect.
"Capability tables are used to track, manage and apply controls based on the object and rights, or capabilities of a subject. For example, a table identifies the object, specifies access rights allowed for a subject, and permits access based on the user's posession of a capability (or ticket) for the object." CBK, pp. 191-192. To put it another way, as noted in AIO3 on p. 169, "A capabiltiy table is different from an ACL because the subject is bound to the capability table, whereas the object is bound to the ACL." Again, a capability table could be used to implement the rules identified by an access control matrix but is different from the matrix itself.
References:
CBK pp. 191-192, 317-318
AIO3, p. 169
The matrix lists the users, groups and roles down the left side and the resources and functions across the top. The cells of the matrix can either indicate that access is allowed or indicate the type of access. CBK pp 317 - 318.
AIO3, p. 169 describes it as a table if subjects and objects specifying the access rights a certain subject possesses pertaining to specific objects.
In either case, the matrix is a way of analyzing the access control needed by a population of subjects to a population of objects. This access control can be applied using rules, ACL's, capability tables, etc.
"A capacity table" is incorrect.
This answer is a trap for the unwary -- it sounds a little like "capability table" but is just there to distract you.
"An access control list" is incorrect.
"It [ACL] specifies a list of users [subjects] who are allowed access to each object" CBK, p. 188 Access control lists (ACL) could be used to implement the rules identified by an access control matrix but is different from the matrix itself.
"A capability table" is incorrect.
"Capability tables are used to track, manage and apply controls based on the object and rights, or capabilities of a subject. For example, a table identifies the object, specifies access rights allowed for a subject, and permits access based on the user's posession of a capability (or ticket) for the object." CBK, pp. 191-192. To put it another way, as noted in AIO3 on p. 169, "A capabiltiy table is different from an ACL because the subject is bound to the capability table, whereas the object is bound to the ACL." Again, a capability table could be used to implement the rules identified by an access control matrix but is different from the matrix itself.
References:
CBK pp. 191-192, 317-318
AIO3, p. 169
SSCP Exam Question 373
In which layer of the OSI Model are connection-oriented protocols located in the TCP/IP suite of protocols?
Correct Answer: A
Connection-oriented protocols such as TCP provides reliability.
It is the responsibility of such protocols in the transport layer to ensure every byte is accounted for. The network layer does not provide reliability. It only privides the best route to get the traffic to the final destination address.
For your exam you should know the information below about OSI model:
The Open Systems Interconnection model (OSI) is a conceptual model that characterizes and standardizes the internal functions of a communication system by partitioning it into abstraction layers. The model is a product of the Open Systems Interconnection project at the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), maintained by the identification ISO/IEC 7498-1.
The model groups communication functions into seven logical layers. A layer serves the layer above it and is served by the layer below it. For example, a layer that provides error-free communications across a network provides the path needed by applications above it, while it calls the next lower layer to send and receive packets that make up the contents of that path. Two instances at one layer are connected by a horizontal.
OSI Model

Image source: http://www.petri.co.il/images/osi_model.JPG
PHYSICAL LAYER The physical layer, the lowest layer of the OSI model, is concerned with the transmission and reception of the unstructured raw bit stream over a physical medium. It describes the electrical/optical, mechanical, and functional interfaces to the physical medium, and carries the signals for all of the higher layers. It provides:
Data encoding: modifies the simple digital signal pattern (1s and 0s) used by the PC to better accommodate the characteristics of the physical medium, and to aid in bit and frame synchronization. It determines:
What signal state represents a binary 1
How the receiving station knows when a "bit-time" starts
How the receiving station delimits a frame
DATA LINK LAYER
The data link layer provides error-free transfer of data frames from one node to another
over the physical layer, allowing layers above it to assume virtually error-free transmission
over the link. To do this, the data link layer provides:
Link establishment and termination: establishes and terminates the logical link between two
nodes.
Frame traffic control: tells the transmitting node to "back-off" when no frame buffers are
available.
Frame sequencing: transmits/receives frames sequentially.
Frame acknowledgment: provides/expects frame acknowledgments. Detects and recovers
from errors that occur in the physical layer by retransmitting non-acknowledged frames and
handling duplicate frame receipt.
Frame delimiting: creates and recognizes frame boundaries.
Frame error checking: checks received frames for integrity.
Media access management: determines when the node "has the right" to use the physical
medium.
NETWORK LAYER
The network layer controls the operation of the subnet, deciding which physical path the
data should take based on network conditions, priority of service, and other factors. It
provides:
Routing: routes frames among networks.
Subnet traffic control: routers (network layer intermediate systems) can instruct a sending
station to "throttle back" its frame transmission when the router's buffer fills up.
Frame fragmentation: if it determines that a downstream router's maximum transmission
unit (MTU) size is less than the frame size, a router can fragment a frame for transmission
and re-assembly at the destination station.
Logical-physical address mapping: translates logical addresses, or names, into physical
addresses.
Subnet usage accounting: has accounting functions to keep track of frames forwarded by
subnet intermediate systems, to produce billing information.
Communications Subnet The network layer software must build headers so that the network layer software residing in the subnet intermediate systems can recognize them and use them to route data to the destination address.
This layer relieves the upper layers of the need to know anything about the data transmission and intermediate switching technologies used to connect systems. It establishes, maintains and terminates connections across the intervening communications facility (one or several intermediate systems in the communication subnet).
In the network layer and the layers below, peer protocols exist between a node and its immediate neighbor, but the neighbor may be a node through which data is routed, not the destination station. The source and destination stations may be separated by many intermediate systems.
TRANSPORT LAYER The transport layer ensures that messages are delivered error-free, in sequence, and with no losses or duplications. It relieves the higher layer protocols from any concern with the transfer of data between them and their peers.
The size and complexity of a transport protocol depends on the type of service it can get from the network layer. For a reliable network layer with virtual circuit capability, a minimal transport layer is required. If the network layer is unreliable and/or only supports datagrams, the transport protocol should include extensive error detection and recovery.
The transport layer provides:
Message segmentation: accepts a message from the (session) layer above it, splits the message into smaller units (if not already small enough), and passes the smaller units down to the network layer. The transport layer at the destination station reassembles the message. Message acknowledgment: provides reliable end-to-end message delivery with acknowledgments. Message traffic control: tells the transmitting station to "back-off" when no message buffers are available. Session multiplexing: multiplexes several message streams, or sessions onto one logical link and keeps track of which messages belong to which sessions (see session layer).
Typically, the transport layer can accept relatively large messages, but there are strict message size limits imposed by the network (or lower) layer. Consequently, the transport
layer must break up the messages into smaller units, or frames, prepending a header to
each frame.
The transport layer header information must then include control information, such as
message start and message end flags, to enable the transport layer on the other end to
recognize message boundaries. In addition, if the lower layers do not maintain sequence,
the transport header must contain sequence information to enable the transport layer on
the receiving end to get the pieces back together in the right order before handing the
received message up to the layer above.
End-to-end layers
Unlike the lower "subnet" layers whose protocol is between immediately adjacent nodes,
the transport layer and the layers above are true "source to destination" or end-to-end
layers, and are not concerned with the details of the underlying communications facility.
Transport layer software (and software above it) on the source station carries on a
conversation with similar software on the destination station by using message headers
and control messages.
SESSION LAYER
The session layer allows session establishment between processes running on different
stations. It provides:
Session establishment, maintenance and termination: allows two application processes on
different machines to establish, use and terminate a connection, called a session.
Session support: performs the functions that allow these processes to communicate over
the network, performing security, name recognition, logging, and so on.
PRESENTATION LAYER
The presentation layer formats the data to be presented to the application layer. It can be
viewed as the translator for the network. This layer may translate data from a format used
by the application layer into a common format at the sending station, then translate the
common format to a format known to the application layer at the receiving station.
The presentation layer provides:
Character code translation: for example, ASCII to EBCDIC.
Data conversion: bit order, CR-CR/LF, integer-floating point, and so on.
Data compression: reduces the number of bits that need to be transmitted on the network.
Data encryption: encrypt data for security purposes. For example, password encryption.
APPLICATION LAYER The application layer serves as the window for users and application processes to access network services. This layer contains a variety of commonly needed functions:
Resource sharing and device redirection Remote file access Remote printer access Inter-process communication Network management Directory services Electronic messaging (such as mail) Network virtual terminals
The following were incorrect answers:
Application Layer - The application layer serves as the window for users and application processes to access network services. Network layer - The network layer controls the operation of the subnet, deciding which physical path the data should take based on network conditions, priority of service, and other factors. Physical Layer - The physical layer, the lowest layer of the OSI model, is concerned with the transmission and reception of the unstructured raw bit stream over a physical medium. It describes the electrical/optical, mechanical, and functional interfaces to the physical medium, and carries the signals for all of the higher layers.
The following reference(s) were/was used to create this question:
CISA review manual 2014 Page number 260 and Official ISC2 guide to CISSP CBK 3rd Edition Page number 287 and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tcp_protocol
It is the responsibility of such protocols in the transport layer to ensure every byte is accounted for. The network layer does not provide reliability. It only privides the best route to get the traffic to the final destination address.
For your exam you should know the information below about OSI model:
The Open Systems Interconnection model (OSI) is a conceptual model that characterizes and standardizes the internal functions of a communication system by partitioning it into abstraction layers. The model is a product of the Open Systems Interconnection project at the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), maintained by the identification ISO/IEC 7498-1.
The model groups communication functions into seven logical layers. A layer serves the layer above it and is served by the layer below it. For example, a layer that provides error-free communications across a network provides the path needed by applications above it, while it calls the next lower layer to send and receive packets that make up the contents of that path. Two instances at one layer are connected by a horizontal.
OSI Model

Image source: http://www.petri.co.il/images/osi_model.JPG
PHYSICAL LAYER The physical layer, the lowest layer of the OSI model, is concerned with the transmission and reception of the unstructured raw bit stream over a physical medium. It describes the electrical/optical, mechanical, and functional interfaces to the physical medium, and carries the signals for all of the higher layers. It provides:
Data encoding: modifies the simple digital signal pattern (1s and 0s) used by the PC to better accommodate the characteristics of the physical medium, and to aid in bit and frame synchronization. It determines:
What signal state represents a binary 1
How the receiving station knows when a "bit-time" starts
How the receiving station delimits a frame
DATA LINK LAYER
The data link layer provides error-free transfer of data frames from one node to another
over the physical layer, allowing layers above it to assume virtually error-free transmission
over the link. To do this, the data link layer provides:
Link establishment and termination: establishes and terminates the logical link between two
nodes.
Frame traffic control: tells the transmitting node to "back-off" when no frame buffers are
available.
Frame sequencing: transmits/receives frames sequentially.
Frame acknowledgment: provides/expects frame acknowledgments. Detects and recovers
from errors that occur in the physical layer by retransmitting non-acknowledged frames and
handling duplicate frame receipt.
Frame delimiting: creates and recognizes frame boundaries.
Frame error checking: checks received frames for integrity.
Media access management: determines when the node "has the right" to use the physical
medium.
NETWORK LAYER
The network layer controls the operation of the subnet, deciding which physical path the
data should take based on network conditions, priority of service, and other factors. It
provides:
Routing: routes frames among networks.
Subnet traffic control: routers (network layer intermediate systems) can instruct a sending
station to "throttle back" its frame transmission when the router's buffer fills up.
Frame fragmentation: if it determines that a downstream router's maximum transmission
unit (MTU) size is less than the frame size, a router can fragment a frame for transmission
and re-assembly at the destination station.
Logical-physical address mapping: translates logical addresses, or names, into physical
addresses.
Subnet usage accounting: has accounting functions to keep track of frames forwarded by
subnet intermediate systems, to produce billing information.
Communications Subnet The network layer software must build headers so that the network layer software residing in the subnet intermediate systems can recognize them and use them to route data to the destination address.
This layer relieves the upper layers of the need to know anything about the data transmission and intermediate switching technologies used to connect systems. It establishes, maintains and terminates connections across the intervening communications facility (one or several intermediate systems in the communication subnet).
In the network layer and the layers below, peer protocols exist between a node and its immediate neighbor, but the neighbor may be a node through which data is routed, not the destination station. The source and destination stations may be separated by many intermediate systems.
TRANSPORT LAYER The transport layer ensures that messages are delivered error-free, in sequence, and with no losses or duplications. It relieves the higher layer protocols from any concern with the transfer of data between them and their peers.
The size and complexity of a transport protocol depends on the type of service it can get from the network layer. For a reliable network layer with virtual circuit capability, a minimal transport layer is required. If the network layer is unreliable and/or only supports datagrams, the transport protocol should include extensive error detection and recovery.
The transport layer provides:
Message segmentation: accepts a message from the (session) layer above it, splits the message into smaller units (if not already small enough), and passes the smaller units down to the network layer. The transport layer at the destination station reassembles the message. Message acknowledgment: provides reliable end-to-end message delivery with acknowledgments. Message traffic control: tells the transmitting station to "back-off" when no message buffers are available. Session multiplexing: multiplexes several message streams, or sessions onto one logical link and keeps track of which messages belong to which sessions (see session layer).
Typically, the transport layer can accept relatively large messages, but there are strict message size limits imposed by the network (or lower) layer. Consequently, the transport
layer must break up the messages into smaller units, or frames, prepending a header to
each frame.
The transport layer header information must then include control information, such as
message start and message end flags, to enable the transport layer on the other end to
recognize message boundaries. In addition, if the lower layers do not maintain sequence,
the transport header must contain sequence information to enable the transport layer on
the receiving end to get the pieces back together in the right order before handing the
received message up to the layer above.
End-to-end layers
Unlike the lower "subnet" layers whose protocol is between immediately adjacent nodes,
the transport layer and the layers above are true "source to destination" or end-to-end
layers, and are not concerned with the details of the underlying communications facility.
Transport layer software (and software above it) on the source station carries on a
conversation with similar software on the destination station by using message headers
and control messages.
SESSION LAYER
The session layer allows session establishment between processes running on different
stations. It provides:
Session establishment, maintenance and termination: allows two application processes on
different machines to establish, use and terminate a connection, called a session.
Session support: performs the functions that allow these processes to communicate over
the network, performing security, name recognition, logging, and so on.
PRESENTATION LAYER
The presentation layer formats the data to be presented to the application layer. It can be
viewed as the translator for the network. This layer may translate data from a format used
by the application layer into a common format at the sending station, then translate the
common format to a format known to the application layer at the receiving station.
The presentation layer provides:
Character code translation: for example, ASCII to EBCDIC.
Data conversion: bit order, CR-CR/LF, integer-floating point, and so on.
Data compression: reduces the number of bits that need to be transmitted on the network.
Data encryption: encrypt data for security purposes. For example, password encryption.
APPLICATION LAYER The application layer serves as the window for users and application processes to access network services. This layer contains a variety of commonly needed functions:
Resource sharing and device redirection Remote file access Remote printer access Inter-process communication Network management Directory services Electronic messaging (such as mail) Network virtual terminals
The following were incorrect answers:
Application Layer - The application layer serves as the window for users and application processes to access network services. Network layer - The network layer controls the operation of the subnet, deciding which physical path the data should take based on network conditions, priority of service, and other factors. Physical Layer - The physical layer, the lowest layer of the OSI model, is concerned with the transmission and reception of the unstructured raw bit stream over a physical medium. It describes the electrical/optical, mechanical, and functional interfaces to the physical medium, and carries the signals for all of the higher layers.
The following reference(s) were/was used to create this question:
CISA review manual 2014 Page number 260 and Official ISC2 guide to CISSP CBK 3rd Edition Page number 287 and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tcp_protocol
SSCP Exam Question 374
What is the PRIMARY reason to maintain the chain of custody on evidence that has been collected?
Correct Answer: C
This is the PRIMARY reason for the chain of custody of evidence. Evidence
must be controlled every step of the way. If it is not, the evidence can be tampered with
and ruled inadmissable. The Chain of Custody will include a detailed record of:
Who obtained the evidence
What was the evidence
Where and when the evidence was obtained
Who secured the evidence
Who had control or possession of the evidence
The following answers are incorrect because :
To ensure that no evidence is lost is incorrect as it is not the PRIMARY reason.
To ensure that all possible evidence is gathered is also incorrect as it is not the PRIMARY
reason.
To ensure that incidents were handled with due care and due diligence is also incorrect as
it is also not the PRIMARY reason.
The chain of custody is a history that shows how evidence was collected, analyzed,
transported, and preserved in order to establish that it is sufficiently trustworthy to be
presented as evidence in court. Because electronic evidence can be easily modified, a
clearly defined chain of custody demonstrates that the evidence is trustworthy which would
make it admissible in court.
Reference : Shon Harris AIO v3 , Chapter-10: Law, Investigation, and Ethics , Page : 727
must be controlled every step of the way. If it is not, the evidence can be tampered with
and ruled inadmissable. The Chain of Custody will include a detailed record of:
Who obtained the evidence
What was the evidence
Where and when the evidence was obtained
Who secured the evidence
Who had control or possession of the evidence
The following answers are incorrect because :
To ensure that no evidence is lost is incorrect as it is not the PRIMARY reason.
To ensure that all possible evidence is gathered is also incorrect as it is not the PRIMARY
reason.
To ensure that incidents were handled with due care and due diligence is also incorrect as
it is also not the PRIMARY reason.
The chain of custody is a history that shows how evidence was collected, analyzed,
transported, and preserved in order to establish that it is sufficiently trustworthy to be
presented as evidence in court. Because electronic evidence can be easily modified, a
clearly defined chain of custody demonstrates that the evidence is trustworthy which would
make it admissible in court.
Reference : Shon Harris AIO v3 , Chapter-10: Law, Investigation, and Ethics , Page : 727
SSCP Exam Question 375
Of the following, which is NOT a specific loss criteria that should be considered while developing a BIA?
Correct Answer: A
Explanation/Reference:
Although a loss of skilled workers knowledge would cause the company a great loss, it is not identified as a specific loss criteria. It would fall under one of the three other criteria listed as distracters.
Source: HARRIS, Shon, All-In-One CISSP Certification Exam Guide, McGraw-Hill/Osborne, 2002, chapter
9: Disaster Recovery and Business continuity (page 598).
Although a loss of skilled workers knowledge would cause the company a great loss, it is not identified as a specific loss criteria. It would fall under one of the three other criteria listed as distracters.
Source: HARRIS, Shon, All-In-One CISSP Certification Exam Guide, McGraw-Hill/Osborne, 2002, chapter
9: Disaster Recovery and Business continuity (page 598).
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