Conduct vulnerability scans, analyze results, and validate findings to identify and address security weaknesses (17% of exam).
Encompasses conducting authenticated and unauthenticated vulnerability scans, including Static Application Security Testing (SAST) and Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST). Covers result analysis including validating findings, troubleshooting configurations, and identifying false positives. Includes using discovery tools like Nessus, Nikto, and OpenVAS for vulnerability identification and assessment.
5 minutes
5 Questions
In the context of the CompTIA PenTest+ certification, Vulnerability Discovery and Analysis is a pivotal domain that serves as the bridge between initial reconnaissance and active exploitation. This phase focuses on systematically identifying, validating, and prioritizing security weaknesses within a target's network, systems, and applications.
The process begins with comprehensive scanning and enumeration. Testers utilize tools like Nmap for port scanning to identify active services, followed by automated vulnerability scanners (such as Nessus, OpenVAS, or Nikto) to detect known security flaws. A critical distinction in this phase is the choice between credentialed scans—which allow deep inspection of registry settings, patch levels, and configurations—and non-credentialed scans, which simulate an external attacker's limited visibility.
Analysis is equally important as discovery. Automated tools frequently generate false positives (reporting vulnerabilities that do not exist) or false negatives (missing real vulnerabilities). The penetration tester must manually validate these findings through techniques like banner grabbing, packet analysis, and service interrogation. This domain also covers application-specific analysis, utilizing Static Application Security Testing (SAST) to review source code and Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) to analyze running applications.
Ultimately, the goal is to map the attack surface accurately. Testers prioritize findings based on risk scoring systems like CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System) and the specific business context. By filtering out noise and focusing on exploitable flaws, this phase provides the roadmap for the subsequent exploitation attacks, ensuring efforts are focused on high-impact vulnerabilities.In the context of the CompTIA PenTest+ certification, Vulnerability Discovery and Analysis is a pivotal domain that serves as the bridge between initial reconnaissance and active exploitation. This phase focuses on systematically identifying, validating, and prioritizing security weaknesses within …