Chapter 1: Introduction to Cybersecurity Attacks

Good morning, everyone! I hope you're all doing well. Today, we’ll explore two significant topics under objective 1.3 of the Security+ exam. This session aims to help you prepare effectively for the SY0–601 exam.

Objective 1.3 focuses on analyzing potential indicators linked to application attacks.

Section 1.1: Passing the Hash Attack

The Passing the Hash (PtH) attack is increasingly prevalent, especially with the rise of single sign-on (SSO) systems in corporations and websites worldwide. Data from 2018 reported around 85 vulnerabilities related to authentication bypasses. Most popular websites we use daily employ SSO for user authentication, which inherently carries the risk of exposed vulnerabilities in the authentication process.

The PtH technique necessitates only a basic understanding of how credentials can be stolen. Here, attackers wait for users to authenticate via SSO, during which their credentials are stored in the browser. The attacker’s objective is to capture the hashed password used during this process. Once acquired, this hashed password can be leveraged to bypass a user's account through Windows file-sharing protocols.

There are simpler methods to carry out this attack, such as compromising workstations to seek out hashed passwords. A privilege escalation attack can enable attackers to move horizontally across user accounts, accessing saved hash passwords and exploiting them to breach various websites or gain root access to a workstation.

1. What strategies can we implement to mitigate the Passing the Hash attack? (List two actions)
2. How does user privilege influence the risk of a Passing the Hash attack?

Section 1.2: SQL Injections

SQL Injections are server-side attacks that exploit queries sent directly to databases, allowing unauthorized data retrieval from front-end web applications. Attackers can input malicious scripts into the application, leading to server-side execution errors that reveal sensitive information not intended for disclosure. Research from 2017 to 2019 indicated a 65% increase in SQL injection incidents, a trend likely to rise as new technologies emerge and security measures are not adequately implemented.

1. What preventive measures can we adopt against SQL Injection? (List two actions)
2. What does SQL stand for?

Conclusion

In today’s discussion, we addressed the Passing the Hash attack and SQL Injection vulnerabilities affecting web applications. I hope this session has clarified key aspects related to objective 1.3 of the SY0–601 exam. Wishing everyone a wonderful Sunday! I look forward to covering more topics with you soon. Keep up the coding and stay secure!

Resources and Answers

1. Mitigation Strategies for Passing the Hash Attack:
   • Implementing behavior-based antivirus solutions, as PtH attacks are network behavior-driven and conventional antivirus may fail to detect them.
   • Utilizing complex passwords and refraining from saving them on local workstations can help prevent privilege escalation attacks.
2. Impact of User Privilege on Passing the Hash Attack:
   • Yes, user privileges play a critical role. If a group of users has similar privileges, an attacker can easily compromise one account and gain access to all related administrative controls.

Recommended Videos

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