What property of a cryptographic hash function makes it suitable for detecting data tampering?

It produces a fixed-size output regardless of input length.

It encrypts the data with a secret key.

It is reversible with the correct key.

Any change to the input produces a different output.

A company's IT policy requires that encryption keys be stored separately from the encrypted data. Which of the following is the primary reason for this practice?

To reduce the risk of data exposure if the storage medium is compromised.

To comply with export regulations for cryptographic software.

To allow multiple users to access the same encrypted data without individual keys.

To improve the performance of encryption and decryption operations.

Two remote offices need to establish a secure communication channel. They plan to use a pre-shared key (PSK) for symmetric encryption. What is the primary risk of using a PSK?

Symmetric encryption is slower than asymmetric.

If the PSK is compromised, all traffic encrypted with it is exposed.

The PSK does not provide confidentiality.

A user attempts to connect to a secure website and receives a warning that the certificate is not trusted. The certificate is not expired and the domain matches. What should the user do first?

Check whether the certificate was issued by a CA that the browser trusts.

Clear the browser cache and try again.

Disable the browser's certificate validation temporarily.

Proceed to the website anyway because the domain matches.

A software vendor distributes a signed update file. The vendor's support team tells you to verify the digital signature before installation. What does successfully verifying the signature prove?

The file is free of malware and safe to install.

The file was encrypted during transit to prevent eavesdropping.

The file has not been modified since it was signed and the signature was created with the vendor's private key.

The vendor's certificate is trusted by your organization's root CA.

GIAC Information Security Fundamentals

Domain 4Objective 1

Foundations of Cryptography and Digital Trust GISF Practice Questions (Page 8)

Part of the Cryptography and Identity domain, which makes up ~14% of our current practice bank. GIAC (SANS) does not publish an official question count, but from its 120-minute exam (~50–80 total, ~7–11 in this domain), expect 4–6 from this objective — we provide 45 practice questions to prepare you well beyond it. (estimate)

45questions here

9free pages

7concepts

Questions 36–40

36foundation · easy
What property of a cryptographic hash function makes it suitable for detecting data tampering?
Select an answer first
37application · medium
A company's IT policy requires that encryption keys be stored separately from the encrypted data. Which of the following is the primary reason for this practice?
Select an answer first
38application · medium
Two remote offices need to establish a secure communication channel. They plan to use a pre-shared key (PSK) for symmetric encryption. What is the primary risk of using a PSK?
Select an answer first
39application · medium
A user attempts to connect to a secure website and receives a warning that the certificate is not trusted. The certificate is not expired and the domain matches. What should the user do first?
Select an answer first
40application · medium
A software vendor distributes a signed update file. The vendor's support team tells you to verify the digital signature before installation. What does successfully verifying the signature prove?
Select an answer first

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