CompTIA Operational Procedure 1 — Questions and Answers

Question 1: Which of the following words is used to describe an environmental control system?

HVAC (Correct answer)
SCADA
TEMPEST
HIPS

Correct answer: HVAC

HVAC stands for Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning. It is the standard term used to describe systems that control the environmental conditions within a building, including temperature, humidity, and air quality. These systems are crucial for maintaining optimal operating conditions for IT equipment in data centers and server rooms.

Question 2: In the following scenario, what should he do to put out the fire? After hearing the fire alarm in the network room, you see smoke flowing from a server. One of your coworkers is already attempting to calm it down with a pail of water as you yell and urge him to stop.

wet chemicals
a fire extinguisher of class C (Correct answer)
wet fire traps
dry fire traps

Correct answer: a fire extinguisher of class C

A server fire is an electrical fire, which is classified as a Class C fire. Class C fire extinguishers are specifically designed for electrical fires because they use non-conductive agents, such as CO2 or dry chemical. Using water (Class A) on an electrical fire is extremely dangerous as it can conduct electricity and electrocute the user.

Question 3: What situation is referred to by the phrase "brownout"?

Interference in the electromagnetic field
Power outage
Power spike
Voltage drop (temporary) (Correct answer)

Correct answer: Voltage drop (temporary)

A brownout refers to a temporary drop in voltage in an electrical power supply. This reduction in power can cause electronic devices to malfunction, operate inefficiently, or even shut down unexpectedly, as they are not receiving sufficient power to operate correctly. It is less severe than a complete power outage.

Question 4: What would be excluded from personally identifiable information (PII)?

the date of birth
address
Name of a high school teacher (Correct answer)
last name

Correct answer: Name of a high school teacher

Personally Identifiable Information (PII) is any data that could potentially identify a specific individual. While date of birth, address, and last name are direct identifiers, a high school teacher's name, by itself, does not directly identify the individual in question and is generally not considered PII. It lacks the direct link to the individual whose PII is being protected.

Question 5: What exactly does the phrase "blackout" mean?

Power spike
Electromagnetic interference
Drop in voltage
Power outage (Correct answer)

Correct answer: Power outage

A blackout is a complete and total loss of electrical power in an area or to a specific system. Unlike a brownout, which is a temporary voltage drop, a blackout means there is no electricity flowing at all. This can lead to system shutdowns and data loss if not properly managed with backup power solutions.

Question 6: In the following scenario, what special safety devices would be most appropriate for his environment? After selling yourself as an IT consultant, one possible client calls you about multiple network design projects at his organization. There are tons of airborne particles afloat all the time in the factory where he works. He's curious about any unique considerations he should make when setting up his machines.

surge protectors
air filters
enclosures (Correct answer)
air masks

Correct answer: enclosures

In an environment with many airborne particles, such as a factory, sensitive IT equipment like servers needs protection from dust and debris. Enclosures, such as sealed server cabinets, provide a physical barrier to prevent particles from entering and damaging the internal components of the machines. This protects hardware and ensures longevity.

Question 7: A device designed to provide emergency power in the event of a main power loss is known as:

SVC
PoE
c
UPS (Correct answer)

Correct answer: UPS

A UPS, or Uninterruptible Power Supply, is a device that provides temporary power to equipment when the main power source fails. It typically contains a battery that kicks in immediately, allowing for a graceful shutdown of systems or bridging short power outages. This prevents data loss and system corruption during power interruptions.

Question 8: What is the best way to describe the objective of electrical grounding if you're the senior administrator and a new employee at the IT help desk has just started, and you've been tasked with showing him the ropes? While reviewing general safety procedures, the new employee inquires about the target of grounding electrical systems.

a method of delivering energy to the ground safely for wireless charging
a method of removing unwanted electrical discharge from connected components (Correct answer)
a means to give an alternative method of transporting and receiving electricity for devices
A new way for powering redundant server farms has been developed.

Correct answer: a method of removing unwanted electrical discharge from connected components

Electrical grounding provides a safe path for excess electrical current to flow into the earth, preventing electrical shocks and protecting equipment from damage due to surges or faults. It essentially acts as a safety valve for unwanted electrical discharge. This ensures that stray currents are safely dissipated rather than causing harm or damage.

Question 9: Which of the following solutions adds redundancy to places where single points of failure have been identified? (Choose all of the options that apply.)

RAID (Correct answer)
Virtualization
Backup generator (Correct answer)
Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) (Correct answer)

Correct answer: RAID

RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) provides data redundancy for storage, protecting against single disk failures. A backup generator provides redundant power in case of a utility outage, ensuring continuous operation. An Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) provides immediate, short-term redundant power to bridge outages or allow for graceful shutdowns, all of which eliminate single points of failure.

Question 10: During an IT meeting, your colleague Karylle proposes that the only load balancer in place for the company's website ordering system has a single point of failure. She recommends configuring two load balancers, with only one in use at any one moment. What kind of load balancing setup does Karylle recommend?

Active-active
Active-passive (Correct answer)
Least connections
Round robin

Correct answer: Active-passive

In an active-passive load balancing setup, one load balancer is actively handling all incoming traffic, while the other remains in a standby (passive) state. If the active load balancer fails, the passive one automatically detects the failure and takes over, ensuring continuous service availability without interruption. This provides high availability for critical systems.

Question 11: Company A has recently developed a custom airline ticketing system. When a freelance coding specialist examines it for security flaws, what do you call it?

Dynamic code review
Regression testing (Correct answer)
Static code review
Code review

Correct answer: Regression testing

Correct answer: Regression testing If a freelance coding specialist tests it for security flaws, it is called regression testing.

Question 12: Your organization is going over backups of important data. Some data has not been backed up, according to the report. An current firm policy, on the other hand, mandates that all data be backed up. You must have a backup of your data. Which of the following individuals should be in charge of the backup?

Privacy officer
Data owner
Data creator
Data custodian (Correct answer)

Correct answer: Data custodian

The data custodian is responsible for the technical implementation and maintenance of data protection measures, including performing backups, managing access controls, and ensuring data storage integrity. While the data owner determines the value and sensitivity of the data, the custodian is the one who actually performs the tasks to ensure the data is backed up and protected according to policy.

Question 13: A junior security professional on your team is attempting to export and share a public certificate with a colleague outside of the IT department. They want to know if they should utilize CER or PFX. What is the best format to use?

Both are acceptable
Neither are acceptable
CER (Correct answer)
PFX

Correct answer: CER

CER (Certificate) is a common file format for public certificates, which contains only the public key and certificate information. It is safe to share because it does not contain the sensitive private key. PFX (Personal Information Exchange) format, on the other hand, typically includes both the public certificate and its corresponding private key, making it unsuitable and insecure for sharing with colleagues who only need the public certificate.

Question 14: Which of the following is a cryptographic network protocol used for secure data communication, remote command-line login, remote command execution, and other secure network services?

TFTP
Telnet
SSH (Correct answer)
Bcrypt

Correct answer: SSH

SSH (Secure Shell) is a cryptographic network protocol specifically designed for secure remote access and data communication over an unsecured network. It uses strong encryption to protect the confidentiality and integrity of data, making it ideal for remote command-line login, remote command execution, and secure file transfers. Unlike Telnet, SSH encrypts all traffic, preventing eavesdropping and tampering.

Question 15: A telecommunications business has filed a lawsuit against some of its workers for alleged fraud and unauthorized use of company assets. You're a member of the team tasked with gathering evidence and protecting its admissibility. Which forensic procedures are you most likely to employ?

Ballistic Analysis
Luminol Spray
Non-repudiation
Chain of custody (Correct answer)

Correct answer: Chain of custody

Chain of custody is a critical forensic procedure that meticulously documents the chronological sequence of possession, transfer, analysis, and disposition of evidence. Maintaining an unbroken chain ensures the evidence's integrity and authenticity, which is essential for its admissibility in legal proceedings. This process prevents challenges regarding tampering or unreliability of the evidence.

Question 16: You work as a business networking consultant, and one of your clients is a huge retail outlet. Configuring a wifi router in their coffee shop area is your mission for them. Customers who are in line will use the wireless connection to connect to the Internet. You want to make sure that wireless clients can connect to the Internet but not to the retail outlet's offices' internal systems. Where will the wireless router be plugged in?

Port 1 on the switch
DMZ (Correct answer)
LAN
Port 24 on the switch

Correct answer: DMZ

A Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) is a perimeter network that protects an organization's internal local area network (LAN) from untrusted traffic. By placing the customer Wi-Fi router in a DMZ, customers can access the internet without having direct access to the company's sensitive internal systems. This configuration provides a crucial layer of security by isolating public-facing services from the private network.

Question 17: A corporation recently encountered a shoulder surfing problem. Which of the following protections would be beneficial in this situation?

Video cameras
Smart cards
Screen filters (Correct answer)
Biometric authentication

Correct answer: Screen filters

Shoulder surfing involves an unauthorized person looking over someone's shoulder to obtain confidential information displayed on a screen. Screen filters, also known as privacy filters, are physical overlays that restrict the viewing angle of a display. This makes it difficult for anyone not directly in front of the screen to see its contents, directly mitigating the risk of shoulder surfing.

Question 18: Your on-premises identity provider (IdP) is being integrated with a cloud-based service. Federated authentication is available through the cloud-based service. Which two protocols from the list below could you utilize for the integration? (Select two.)

SAML (Correct answer)
Kerberos
OpenID Connect (Correct answer)
LDAP

Correct answer: SAML

SAML (Security Assertion Markup Language) and OpenID Connect (OIDC) are both widely adopted protocols for federated authentication, enabling single sign-on across different security domains. SAML is an XML-based standard often used for enterprise applications, while OIDC is a simpler identity layer built on top of the OAuth 2.0 framework, popular for consumer-facing applications and APIs. Both facilitate secure identity exchange between an identity provider and a service provider.

CompTIA Operational Procedure 1

Which of the following words is used to describe an environmental control system?