An administrator is concerned that a company’s web server has not been patched. Which of the following
would be the BEST assessment for the administrator to perform?
A.
Vulnerability scan
B.
Risk assessment
C.
Virus scan
D.
Network sniffer
Explanation:
A vulnerability scan is the process of scanning the network and/or I.T. infrastructure for threats and
vulnerabilities. Vulnerabilities include computer systems that do not have the latest security patches
installed.
The threats and vulnerabilities are then evaluated in a risk assessment and the necessary actions taken to
resolve and vulnerabilities.
A vulnerability scan is the automated process of proactively identifying security vulnerabilities of
computing systems in a network in order to determine if and where a system can be exploited and/or
threatened. While public servers are important for communication and data transfer over the Internet,
they open the door to potential security breaches by threat agents, such as malicious hackers.
Vulnerability scanning employs software that seeks out security flaws based on a database of known
flaws, testing systems for the occurrence of these flaws and generating a report of the findings that an
individual or an enterprise can use to tighten the network’s security.
Vulnerability scanning typically refers to the scanning of systems that are connected to the Internet but
can also refer to system audits on internal networks that are not connected to the Internet in order to
assess the threat of rogue software or malicious employees in an enterprise.
Incorrect Answers:
B: A risk assessment is the process of determining risk. A risk assessment alone would not determine if a
web server has been patched. A vulnerability scan should be performed first. The results of the
vulnerability scan can then be used in a risk assessment.C: A virus scan will scan a computer for known viruses. It is not used to determine if a system has been
patched.
D: A network sniffer is a hardware device or more commonly a software program used to capture
network data communications sent between devices on a network. It is not used to determine if a system
has been patched.http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/V/vulnerability_scanning.html