Practice Free CCSK Exam Online Questions
How should an SDLC be modified to address application security in a Cloud Computing environment?
- A . Integrated development environments
- B . Updated threat and trust models
- C . No modification is needed
- D . Just-in-time compilers
- E . Both B and C
What is a PRIMARY cloud customer responsibility when managing SaaS applications in terms of security and compliance?
- A . Generating logs within the SaaS applications
- B . Managing the financial costs of SaaS subscriptions
- C . Providing training sessions for staff on using SaaS tools
- D . Evaluating the security measures and compliance requirements
D
Explanation:
Cloud customers are responsible for assessing the security and compliance of SaaS applications, ensuring these align with internal policies and regulations.
Reference: [CCSK v5 Overview, Shared Responsibility Model]
Which of the following best describes how cloud computing manages shared resources?
- A . Through virtualization, with administrators allocating resources based on SLAs
- B . Through abstraction and automation to distribute resources to customers
- C . By allocating physical systems to a single customer at a time
- D . Through manual configuration of resources for each user need
B
Explanation:
Cloud computing uses abstraction and automation to pool and distribute resources efficiently among multiple tenants. This allows dynamic allocation based on demand.
Reference: [CCSK v5 Curriculum, Domain 1 – Cloud Computing Models]
What is a common characteristic of Platform as a Service (PaaS)?
- A . Satisfies compliance and security requirements
- B . Integration with application development frameworks and middleware capabilities
- C . Limited configuration options increases security risks
- D . Fully hosted application stack
B
Explanation:
Platform as a Service (PaaS) provides a development and deployment environment with resources that enable users to deliver everything from simple cloud-based apps to sophisticated, cloud-enabled enterprise applications.
According to CSA Security Guidance v4.0 C Domain 1: Cloud Computing Concepts and Architectures:
“PaaS adds an additional layer of integration with application development frameworks, middleware capabilities, and functions such as databases, messaging, and queuing. These services allow developers to build applications on the platform with programming languages and tools that are supported by the stack.”
(CSA Security Guidance v4.0, Domain 1)
This integration with app development and middleware is the key defining feature of PaaS.
Which of the following enhances Platform as a Service (PaaS) security by regulating traffic into PaaS components?
- A . Intrusion Detection Systems
- B . Hardware Security Modules
- C . Network Access Control Lists
- D . API Gateways
D
Explanation:
API Gateways enhance Platform as a Service (PaaS) security by regulating traffic into and out of PaaS components. They act as an intermediary between external requests and the PaaS applications, helping to enforce security policies such as authentication, authorization, rate limiting, input validation, and logging. API gateways help protect PaaS components by controlling which traffic is allowed to reach the services, thereby reducing exposure to potential attacks.
Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS) are used to detect potential threats in a network, but they don’t specifically regulate traffic into PaaS components like API Gateways do. Hardware Security Modules (HSMs) are used for managing encryption keys and cryptographic operations but do not directly regulate traffic to PaaS components. Network Access Control Lists (NACLs) control traffic at the network layer but are generally used for controlling traffic to/from virtual machines or subnets rather than for PaaS components specifically.
Which of the following is a perceived advantage or disadvantage of managing enterprise risk for cloud deployments?
- A . More physical control over assets and processes.
- B . Greater reliance on contracts, audits, and assessments due to lack of visibility or management.
- C . Decreased requirement for proactive management of relationship and adherence to contracts.
- D . Increased need, but reduction in costs, for managing risks accepted by the cloud provider.
- E . None of the above.
Use elastic servers when possible and move workloads to new instances.
- A . False
- B . True
In the context of cloud workload security, which feature directly contributes to enhanced performance and resource utilization without incurring excess costs?
- A . Fixed resource allocations
- B . Unlimited data storage capacity
- C . Increased on-premise hardware
- D . Elasticity of cloud resources
D
Explanation:
Elasticity of cloud resources is a key feature that directly contributes to enhanced performance and resource utilization while avoiding excess costs. Cloud elasticity allows resources (such as compute power, storage, and network bandwidth) to automatically scale up or down based on demand. This ensures that organizations are only using the resources they need at any given time, optimizing both performance and cost-efficiency.
Fixed resource allocations do not provide the flexibility needed to optimize resource utilization and can lead to either over-provisioning (wasting resources) or under-provisioning (affecting performance). Unlimited data storage capacity is not typical in all cloud environments and does not directly impact resource optimization or performance. Increased on-premise hardware is unrelated to cloud workload security, as it refers to traditional, non-cloud infrastructure.
What’s the best way for organizations to establish a foundation for safeguarding data, upholding privacy, and meeting regulatory requirements in cloud applications?
- A . By implementing end-to-end encryption and multi-factor authentication
- B . By conducting regular security audits and updates
- C . By deploying intrusion detection systems and monitoring
- D . By integrating security at the architectural and design level
D
Explanation:
The best way for organizations to establish a foundation for safeguarding data, upholding privacy, and meeting regulatory requirements in cloud applications is by integrating security at the architectural and design level. This approach ensures that security is built into the application from the start, rather than being added as an afterthought. By incorporating security features like encryption, access controls, and compliance measures during the design and development phases, organizations can better protect sensitive data, reduce vulnerabilities, and meet regulatory requirements more effectively.
While implementing encryption, multi-factor authentication, conducting audits, and deploying monitoring tools are also important, they are part of the overall security strategy rather than the foundational approach. Integrating security into the architecture ensures a more comprehensive, proactive security posture.
What is the primary purpose of virtual machine (VM) image sources?
- A . To back up data within the VM
- B . To provide core components for VM images
- C . To optimize VM performance
- D . To secure the VM against unauthorized access
B
Explanation:
Correct Option:
B. To provide core components for VM images
In cloud computing and virtualization, VM image sources serve as base templates used to build new virtual machine instances. These image sources typically contain the core operating system, necessary drivers, and pre-installed software configurations that allow users to deploy environments quickly and consistently.
From the CSA Security Guidance v4.0 C Domain 8: Virtualization and Containers:
"The VM image repository (or image store) contains templates from which new VMs are instantiated. These base images include the core operating system and predefined settings. VM image sources ensure that instances can be created consistently and securely."
― Domain 8: Virtualization and Containers, CSA Security Guidance v4.0
Additionally, cloud providers often pre-harden these images to enhance security and ensure that they meet organizational compliance standards. However, the primary function remains to serve as starting points or blueprints for VM creation ― not performance tuning or backup.
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect:
