CompTIA Updated PT0-003 Exam Questions and Answers by zachariah

The tester’s activity involves analyzing the contents of a JAR file to identify potentially vulnerable components. This process is known as Software Composition Analysis (SCA). Here’s why:

Understanding SCA:

Definition: SCA involves analyzing software to identify third-party and open-source components, checking for known vulnerabilities, and ensuring license compliance.

Purpose: To detect and manage risks associated with third-party software components.

Comparison with Other Terms:

SAST (A): Static Application Security Testing involves analyzing source code for security vulnerabilities without executing the code.

SBOM (B): Software Bill of Materials is a detailed list of all components in a software product, often used in SCA but not the analysis itself.

ICS (C): Industrial Control Systems, not relevant to the context of software analysis.

The tester’s activity of examining a JAR file for vulnerable components aligns with SCA, making it the correct answer.

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PsExec is a Windows Sysinternals tool that allows users to execute commands on a remote system without needing an interactive login session. The command above is executing cmd.exe on a remote Windows Active Directory domain machine (server01.cor.ptia.org).

Option A (Test connectivity using PsExec) ❌: The command does not check connectivity; it executes a command remotely.

Option B (Perform a lateral movement attack) ✅: Correct. Lateral movement occurs when an attacker moves from one compromised machine to another within a network, using valid credentials. PsExec is often used for this purpose.

Option C (Send the PsExec binary) ❌: The command runs cmd.exe remotely, but it does not transfer PsExec itself.

Option D (Enable cmd.exe) ❌: cmd.exe is already enabled by default on most Windows systems.

???? Reference: CompTIA PenTest+ PT0-003 Official Guide – Lateral Movement with PsExec

In network penetration testing, the initial steps involve gathering information to build an understanding of the network's structure, devices, and potential entry points. The process generally follows a structured approach, starting from broad discovery methods to more specific identification techniques. Here's a comprehensive breakdown of the steps:

Host Discovery (Answer: C):

Objective: Identify live hosts on the network.

Tools & Techniques:

Ping Sweep: Using tools like nmap with the -sn option (ping scan) to check for live hosts by sending ICMP Echo requests.

ARP Scan: Useful in local networks, arp-scan can help identify all devices on the local subnet by broadcasting ARP requests.

nmap -sn 192.168.1.0/24

 References:

The GoBox HTB write-up emphasizes the importance of identifying hosts before moving to service enumeration​​.

The Forge HTB write-up also highlights using Nmap for initial host discovery in its enumeration phase​​.

 Service Discovery (Option A):

Objective: After identifying live hosts, determine the services running on them.

Tools & Techniques:

Nmap: Often used with options like -sV for version detection to identify services.

nmap -sV 192.168.1.100

 References:

As seen in multiple write-ups (e.g., Anubis HTB and Bolt HTB), service discovery follows host identification to understand the services available for potential exploitation​​​​.

 OS Fingerprinting (Option B):

Objective: Determine the operating system of the identified hosts.

Tools & Techniques:

Nmap: With the -O option for OS detection.

nmap -O 192.168.1.100

 References:

Accurate OS fingerprinting helps tailor subsequent attacks and is often performed after host and service discovery, as highlighted in the write-ups​​.

 DNS Enumeration (Option D):

Objective: Identify DNS records and gather subdomains related to the target domain.

Tools & Techniques:

dnsenum, dnsrecon, and dig.

dnsenum example.com

To maintain access to a compromised system after rebooting, a penetration tester should create a scheduled task. Scheduled tasks are designed to run automatically at specified times or when certain conditions are met, ensuring persistence across reboots.

Persistence Mechanisms:

Scheduled Task: Creating a scheduled task ensures that a specific program or script runs automatically according to a set schedule or in response to certain events, including system startup. This makes it a reliable method for maintaining access after a system reboot.

Reverse Shell: While establishing a reverse shell provides immediate access, it typically does not survive a system reboot unless coupled with another persistence mechanism.

Process Injection: Injecting a malicious process into another running process can provide stealthy access but may not persist through reboots.

Credential Dumping: Dumping credentials allows for re-access by using stolen credentials, but it does not ensure automatic access upon reboot.

Creating a Scheduled Task:

On Windows, the schtasks command can be used to create scheduled tasks. For example:

schtasks /create /tn "Persistence" /tr "C:\path\to\malicious.exe" /sc onlogon /ru SYSTEM

On Linux, a cron job can be created by editing the crontab:

(crontab -l; echo "@reboot /path/to/malicious.sh") | crontab -

Pentest References:

Maintaining persistence is a key objective in post-exploitation. Scheduled tasks (Windows Task Scheduler) and cron jobs (Linux) are commonly used techniques.

References to real-world scenarios include creating scheduled tasks to execute malware, keyloggers, or reverse shells automatically on system startup.

By creating a scheduled task, the penetration tester ensures that their access method (e.g., reverse shell, malware) is executed automatically whenever the system reboots, providing reliable persistence.

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