Minimizing Risk of Pass-the-Hash Vulnerability on Windows Infrastructure | SY0-601 Exam Prep

Mitigating Pass-the-Hash Vulnerability

Prev Question Next Question

Question

A security analyst is mitigating a pass-the-hash vulnerability on a Windows infrastructure.

Given the requirement, which of the following should the security analyst do to MINIMIZE the risk?

Answers

Explanations

Click on the arrows to vote for the correct answer

A. B. C. D.

B.

Pass-the-hash is a type of attack where an attacker captures the hashed credentials of a user and then uses them to authenticate to a system without knowing the actual password. To mitigate this vulnerability in a Windows infrastructure, the security analyst should take the following steps:

Option B: Disable NTLM NTLM is an old and vulnerable authentication protocol that is susceptible to pass-the-hash attacks. Disabling NTLM and using more secure protocols like Kerberos can help minimize the risk of pass-the-hash attacks.

Option C: Enable Kerberos Kerberos is a strong authentication protocol that uses a ticket-based system to authenticate users and services. Enabling Kerberos and disabling other weak protocols like NTLM can help mitigate the risk of pass-the-hash attacks.

Option A: Enable CHAP CHAP (Challenge-Handshake Authentication Protocol) is an authentication protocol that is commonly used in remote access scenarios. While CHAP is secure, it is not a suitable solution to mitigate pass-the-hash attacks on a Windows infrastructure.

Option D: Disable PAP PAP (Password Authentication Protocol) is a plaintext authentication protocol that is used in some remote access scenarios. While disabling PAP can help increase security, it is not a suitable solution to mitigate pass-the-hash attacks on a Windows infrastructure.

In summary, to minimize the risk of pass-the-hash attacks on a Windows infrastructure, the security analyst should disable weak protocols like NTLM and enable stronger authentication protocols like Kerberos. Option B (Disable NTLM) and Option C (Enable Kerberos) are the best choices to achieve this.