CY-702-A Penetration Testing and Vulnerability Analysis - Jun 2025 Question Paper

Under each question, How to answer lists the points an answer should cover, outlined by CampusPrep from the syllabus. Check the details against your textbook.

1. 7 Marks
   aDefine penetration testing and explain its various types with suitable examples.
   How to answer

   • Definition of penetration testing as authorized simulated attack to find vulnerabilities
   • Types: black-box, white-box, grey-box / network, web app, wireless, social engineering
   • Examples for each type
   • Objectives and brief methodology
2. 7 Marks
   bDiscuss the legal and ethical considerations associated with penetration testing.
   How to answer

   • Need for authorization, scope and rules of engagement
   • Legal issues: contracts, compliance, liability, privacy laws
   • Ethical issues: confidentiality, no harm, disclosure, professionalism
   • Consequences of violation
3. 7 Marks
   aExplain the process of information gathering in penetration testing. Discuss the techniques used for reconnaissance and footprinting.
   How to answer

   • Phases of information gathering: passive vs active
   • Reconnaissance techniques: WHOIS, DNS, search engines, OSINT
   • Footprinting techniques: network enumeration, ping sweep, port scan
   • Tools examples and output use in later phases
4. 7 Marks
   bWhat is Vulnerability Scanning? Discuss the tools and techniques used for vulnerability scanning.
   How to answer

   • Definition of vulnerability scanning vs pen testing
   • Types: network, host, web, authenticated vs unauthenticated
   • Tools: Nessus, OpenVAS, Nmap, Nikto, Qualys
   • Scanning process and reporting
5. 7 Marks
   aExplain how web applications are tested for security vulnerabilities. Discuss common web application vulnerabilities.
   How to answer

   • Web app testing methodology: recon, mapping, scanning, exploitation
   • OWASP Top 10 overview
   • Common vulnerabilities: injection, broken auth, XSS, misconfiguration
   • Tools: Burp Suite, OWASP ZAP
6. 7 Marks
   bDescribe SQL injection and Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) attacks. How can these vulnerabilities be mitigated?
   How to answer

   • SQL injection: mechanism, types, example payload
   • XSS: stored, reflected, DOM-based with example
   • Impact of both attacks
   • Mitigations: prepared statements, input validation, output encoding, CSP
7. 7 Marks
   aDiscuss the importance of wireless network security. Explain Wi-Fi vulnerabilities and attacks.
   How to answer

   • Importance: ubiquity, eavesdropping, unauthorized access
   • Wi-Fi vulnerabilities: WEP/WPA weaknesses, rogue AP, deauth
   • Attacks: evil twin, KRACK, packet sniffing, brute-force
   • Countermeasures: WPA3, strong passwords, segmentation
8. 7 Marks
   bExplain different social engineering techniques used for cyber-attacks.
   How to answer

   • Definition of social engineering
   • Techniques: phishing, spear phishing, vishing, pretexting, baiting, tailgating
   • How each technique exploits human psychology
   • Prevention awareness
9. 7 Marks
   aWhat is Cryptography? Explain the role of encryption and decryption in secure communication.
   How to answer

   • Definition of cryptography, goals: confidentiality, integrity, authentication
   • Encryption process: plaintext to ciphertext with key
   • Decryption process: reverse with key
   • Role in secure communication with example
10. 7 Marks
    bDescribe different cryptographic algorithms and their applications.
    How to answer

    • Symmetric algorithms: DES, AES with uses
    • Asymmetric algorithms: RSA, ECC, Diffie-Hellman
    • Hash functions: SHA, MD5
    • Applications: TLS, email, digital signatures, disk encryption
11. 14 Marks
    Solve the following numerical problem: If a system uses AES-256 encryption, how many possible keys exist?
    How to answer

    • Key size 256 bits for AES-256
    • Formula total keys $= 2^{256}$
    • Approximate decimal value $\approx 1.15 \times 10^{77}$
    • Implication for brute-force infeasibility
12. 14 Marks
    Compute the total number of possible password combinations for an 8-character alphanumeric password (including uppercase, lowercase and digits).
    How to answer

    • Character set size: 26 uppercase + 26 lowercase + 10 digits = 62
    • Formula $62^8$ for 8-character password
    • Compute value $\approx 2.18 \times 10^{14}$
    • Security implication
13. 14 Marks
    What is red teaming? How does it differ from penetration testing?
    How to answer

    • Definition of red teaming as adversary emulation
    • Objectives and scope broader than pen testing
    • Differences: scope, duration, stealth, blue team involvement
    • Comparison table