Practice Free CCSK Exam Online Questions
Why is it important to capture and centralize workload logs promptly in a cybersecurity environment?
- A . To simplify application debugging processes
- B . Primarily to reduce data storage costs
- C . Logs may be lost during a scaling event
- D . To comply with data privacy regulations
C
Explanation:
In a cybersecurity environment, it is important to capture and centralize workload logs promptly because logs may be lost during a scaling event. When workloads are scaled up or down, such as when cloud resources are dynamically allocated, logs may not be properly captured or may be overwritten if they are not centralized and stored in a reliable, persistent location. Centralizing logs ensures that valuable security data is not lost during these events and can be accessed for incident detection, analysis, and response.
Containers are highly portable code execution environments.
- A . False
- B . True
What should every cloud customer set up with its cloud service provider (CSP) that can be utilized in the event of an incident?
- A . A data destruction plan
- B . A communication plan
- C . A back-up website
- D . A spill remediation kit
- E . A rainy day fund
What primary aspects should effective cloud governance address to ensure security and compliance?
- A . Service availability, disaster recovery, load balancing, and latency
- B . Decision making, prioritization, monitoring, and transparency
- C . Encryption, redundancy, data integrity, and scalability
- D . Authentication, authorization, accounting, and auditing
B
Explanation:
Effective cloud governance focuses on managing and overseeing cloud resources to ensure that security, compliance, and business objectives are met.
Key aspects include:
Decision making: Establishing clear processes for how decisions are made regarding cloud resource usage, security measures, and compliance strategies.
Prioritization: Ensuring that critical security and compliance risks are prioritized and addressed first.
Monitoring: Continuously monitoring cloud environments for security threats, performance issues, and compliance violations.
Transparency: Ensuring that governance activities are visible to stakeholders, enabling accountability and making it easier to demonstrate compliance with laws, regulations, and internal policies.
These aspects help organizations maintain control over their cloud environments while ensuring they meet security and regulatory requirements.
Which factor is typically considered in data classification?
- A . CI/CD step
- B . Storage capacity requirements
- C . Sensitivity of data
- D . Data controller
C
Explanation:
Data classification is a fundamental security practice used to protect sensitive information based on risk, confidentiality, integrity, and regulatory requirements.
Key Factors in Data Classification:
Data Sensitivity:
Organizations classify data based on how sensitive it is:
Public (e.g., marketing material).
Internal Use Only (e.g., business plans).
Confidential (e.g., financial reports).
Restricted/Highly Confidential (e.g., personal healthcare records, credit card details).
Compliance & Legal Requirements:
Certain data types have strict compliance laws:
PII (Personally Identifiable Information) → GDPR, CCPA
Financial Data → PCI DSS
Healthcare Data → HIPAA
Cloud providers must ensure security policies align with compliance frameworks.
Impact on Security Controls:
Highly sensitive data requires encryption at rest and in transit. Access control must be enforced with least privilege and IAM policies. Risk Management:
Proper data classification helps organizations define security policies such as:
Retention policies (How long data should be stored?).
Backup and disaster recovery strategies.
This is outlined in:
CCSK v5 – Security Guidance v4.0, Domain 11 (Data Security and Encryption) Cloud Controls Matrix (CCM) – Data Security and Data Classification Standards
The containment phase of the incident response lifecycle requires taking systems offline.
- A . False
- B . True
Which of the following best describes an aspect of PaaS services in relation to network security controls within a cloud environment?
- A . They override the VNet/VPC’s network security controls by default
- B . They do not interact with the VNet/VPC’s network security controls
- C . They require manual configuration of network security controls, separate from the VNet/VPC
- D . They often inherit the network security controls of the underlying VNet/VPC
D
Explanation:
In a Platform as a Service (PaaS) environment, the network security controls of the underlying Virtual Network (VNet) or Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) are often inherited by the PaaS services. This means that the network security settings, such as firewalls, security groups, and access control lists (ACLs), that are applied to the VNet/VPC also extend to the PaaS services, providing a seamless security model.
While PaaS services abstract much of the infrastructure management, they still interact with the network security controls in the VNet/VPC, allowing for centralized management of network security.
PaaS services typically do not override network security controls; they integrate with them. They do interact with VNet/VPC security controls, often integrate with network security controls, and do not always require separate manual configuration.
In the IaaS shared responsibility model, which responsibility typically falls on the Cloud Service Provider (CSP)?
- A . Encrypting data at rest
- B . Ensuring physical security of data centers
- C . Managing application code
- D . Configuring firewall rules
B
Explanation:
In the Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) shared responsibility model, the Cloud Service Provider (CSP) is typically responsible for securing the physical infrastructure, which includes the physical security of data centers, servers, networking hardware, and the physical security controls that protect them from unauthorized access or damage.
Encrypting data at rest is typically the responsibility of the consumer, though the CSP may offer tools to help with this. Managing application code is the responsibility of the consumer, as they control and deploy the applications on the infrastructure provided by the CSP. Configuring firewall rules is also the responsibility of the consumer, as they manage the configuration of the virtual network, including security rules like firewalls.
Which type of controls should be implemented when required controls for a cybersecurity framework cannot be met?
- A . Detective controls
- B . Preventive controls
- C . Compensating controls
- D . Administrative controls
C
Explanation:
Compensating controls are implemented when the required controls for a cybersecurity framework cannot be met due to technical or practical limitations. These controls are alternative measures that provide similar protection or risk mitigation. Compensating controls help to ensure that the security posture remains strong even when the primary controls cannot be applied.
Detective controls focus on identifying security incidents after they occur but do not replace required controls. Preventive controls aim to prevent security incidents from occurring but may not always be possible or practical to implement in certain situations. Administrative controls include policies and procedures but do not address the need for compensating measures when technical controls cannot be met.
In the context of IaaS, what are the primary components included in infrastructure?
- A . Network configuration tools, storage encryption, and virtualization platforms
- B . Compute, network, and storage resource pools
- C . User authentication systems, application deployment services, and database management
- D . Load balancers, firewalls, and backup solutions
B
Explanation:
Correct Option:
B. Compute, network, and storage resource pools
In the Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) model, the term “infrastructure” refers to the core physical and virtualized building blocks that form the basis of a cloud environment. These components are abstracted and pooled to offer on-demand provisioning to cloud consumers.
From the CSA Security Guidance v4.0 C Domain 1: Cloud Computing Concepts and Architectures:
“Infrastructure: The core components of a computing system: compute, network, and storage. The foundation that everything else is built on. The moving parts.”
― Section 1.1.4 Logical Model, CSA Security Guidance v4.0 Furthermore:
“IaaS consists of a facility, hardware, an abstraction layer, an orchestration (core connectivity and delivery) layer to tie together the abstracted resources, and APIs to remotely manage the resources and deliver them to consumers.”
― Section 1.1.3.1 Infrastructure as a Service, CSA Security Guidance v4.0
These are commonly referred to as resource pools, and form the foundation of what IaaS delivers: virtual machines (compute), virtual networks (networking), and object/block storage systems (storage).
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect:
