In this article, we will talk about some of the Cyber Security Interview Questions that are asked from practitioners who want to be part of the professionals world that are practicing cyber security techniques to secure individual online resources against online threats.
These questions will help the practitioners to understand what kinds of questions they will face during an interview when trying to apply for a cyber security job profile in an organization. However, those who have not started their journey as a Cyber security professional can also have a look at the questions to be well prepared in the future. Let’s continue!
What is Cyber Security and its Objective?
It refers to the process of securing PCs, Networks, Software, Servers, and Data from online attacks, unauthorized access, damage, and theft. Moreover, it is primarily focused on the CIA of the data and resources.
The main objective of practitioners after learning cyber security techniques and the use of tools is to protect online resources against online threats executed by adversaries/ hackers.
The key objectives of cybersecurity:
- Confidentiality
- Integrity
- Availability
- Authentication
- Authorization
- Non-Repudiation
- Resilience
- Privacy
- Awareness and Training
- Threat Detection and Response.
Top Cyber Security Interview Questions
- What inspired you to pursue a career in cybersecurity?
As an IT Professional, I found myself fascinated by cyber security techniques and tools to protect the data, network, systems, and servers against online threats that adversaries execute to deceive the online surfer into falling into their trap before losing everything to the adversaries’ hands.
2. What cybersecurity courses or projects did you undertake during your studies?
Well, there were several courses to choose from to pursue a career in cybersecurity. However, I chose one of the best cybersecurity courses, which is “Best Cyber Security Course in Delhi With Job Assistance,” which is offered by Bytecode Security.
This course is specially designed to offer an introduction to IT Professionals related to cybersecurity from beginning to the advanced. If you wish to learn more about this cybersecurity course, you can contact Bytecode Security .
3. How do you keep yourself updated with the latest in cybersecurity trends and threats?
To get the latest updates on cybersecurity trends and threats, I follow an online website known as “News4Hackers.” This website will update you on a daily basis about cybersecurity thus, you don’t need any other platform to get the latest updates.
Basic Technical Questions:
4. What’s the difference between a virus and a worm?
A virus is malware that comes attached to a working program and gets shared when the program is run. It needs users to run it and control its actions.
There, the worm is a self-contained malware spreading via the network without getting attached to other programs. Moreover, it can make duplicates and share on its own. Frequently, it can exploit security flaws.
5. Can you explain what a firewall does?
A Firewall is a security feature that works as a protection layer against online attacks on private networks. It spectates and manages incoming and outgoing traffic based on predetermined security standards. Its basic features include the prevention of unauthorized access, malicious attacks, and the sharing of online threats by permitting/ blocking traffic based on the laws.
6. Describe the basic concept of public key cryptography.
Private key: The public key and the private key in cryptography are two keys that are mathematically related to one another. While the private key is kept a secret and only used for decryption or digital signing, the public key is made available and used for encryption. It is unnecessary to share a shared secret in advance to ensure safe communication and authentication because messages encrypted with the public key can only be decrypted using the appropriate private key.
7. What is a VPN, and why is it used?
Virtual Private Network allows you to surf online without showing your true identity or IP address. Moreover, due to that, one can use software that is not available in their country. With that, you can do more than you could expect. You can run applications from other country’s locations. Find out more!
8. How would you define a phishing attack?
Phishing Attack is basically done after collecting some information about the target, like – what they do, what they like, or what you could give them that they won’t be able to refuse. Then the smartest trick comes between, known as “Easy Money Scam/ Scheme.” This attack can definitely victimize the prey and will make them give their confidential data to the hacker without noticing the hacker’s intention. What are you waiting for? Learn cyber security now to protect yourself.
Behavioral and Situational Questions:
9. Imagine you receive a suspicious email at work. What steps would you take?
If I ever face something like I would follow the below steps to be secure.
- I would contact the official whose gmail ID would be imitating the email address I confronted. This will confirm the authenticity of that email.
- I would ignore that email, and even if I were to open it, I would never click on any specific link attached to the email.
- I would report it as a SPAM MAIL for better security.
10. Describe a challenging technical project or problem you faced in school or in a personal project. How did you overcome it?
I’ve never done something like this. However, one time, someone tried to access my gmail account. But because I had my MFA done, they couldn’t access it further. Moreover, I removed my gmail id from every other device showing logged in than what I’m using. That made it further impossible for the hacker to modify data further or create complexity.
11. How do you handle situations where you don’t know the answer to a problem?
I will search online, or I will ask someone who knows the answers to that problem to get the answer faster.
12. Suppose a friend wants to use the same password for all their online accounts. What would you advise them?
Don’t use a similar password for each of your accounts. It’ll make your every account vulnerable to online attacks. Adversaries can use several password-cracking techniques to guess your password and will guess your passwords.
Similar passwords will make it easy for the password-cracking software to guess it in time, and your account access will be in the hands of the hackers. Thus, you should choose strong and unique passwords by including – special characters and letters.
General Knowledge and Interest:
13. Which cybersecurity experts or influencers do you follow, and why?
I don’t follow anyone specifically. However, sometimes, on YouTube, I search for the latest cybersecurity trends to know about the latest security updates. If you also want to learn some basics skills of cybersecurity, you can also search on YouTube.
14. Are there any cybersecurity tools or software you have experimented with or learned about in your own time?
No, but several amazing cybersecurity tools could help you widen your views on how powerful cybersecurity is. Some of them are as follows.
- Wireshark,
- Nmap,
- Metasploit,
- Snort,
- Burp Suite,
- OpenVAS,
- GnuPG,
- YARA,
- Sysinternals Suite, and
- Aircrack-ng.
15. What’s the most interesting cybersecurity news or event you’ve encountered recently? Why did it intrigue you?
Recently, I heard about a cyberattack that victimized an Australian Software Service Provider, which caused several companies to lose their access to the software’s features and hampered their work/ operations. By such an attack, you can assume how dangerous a cyberattack can be and how we need cybersecurity solutions to protect ourselves from such attacks.
Problem-Solving and Critical Thinking:
16. If a website gives you a “certificate error” when trying to access it, what could be some possible reasons?
If you are trying to access a website and it shows you a “Certificate Error,” it can be related to any issue regarding the SSL/ TLS certificate that the site uses to build a secure connection. Some possible reasons for this error include:
- Expired Certificate
- Misconfigured Certificate
- Domain Mismatch
- Untrusted Certificate Authority
- Revoked Certificate
- Weak Encryption
- System Clock Mismatch
- Interception or Attack
- Proxy or Firewall
- Outdated Browser
- Mixed Content
- Server-Side Configuration.
17. Why is it essential to keep software and operating systems updated?
Updating Software & OS is essential because such updates can offer patches to fix known security flaws. Hackers can exploit security flaws to gain illegal access, share malware, or cause other harm.
Frequent updates ensure that software stays safe against the latest threats, improving the overall security and stability of your PC and information.
18. Imagine you’re tasked with securing a personal computer. What steps would you recommend?
If I were to protect a personal computer, then I would definitely follow the following steps
- Install Antivirus Software,
- Enable Firewall,
- Regular Updates,
- Strong Passwords,
- Secure Wi-Fi,
- Backup Data,
- Avoid Suspicious Links,
- Use Trusted Sources,
- Secure Browsing,
- Update Privacy Settings,
- Disable Unneeded Services,
- Regular Scans,
- Secure Email, and
- Safe Downloads.
Conclusion
Now that you have read all the cyber security interview questions, you might have a feeling to learn more about cybersecurity. For that, you can join the Best Cyber Security Course in Delhi with Job Assistance offered by Bytecode Security in Delhi for the bright future of IT Aspirants who want to learn cyber security techniques and the use of tools to protect online resources against online threats.
With that, they will be able to get the best learning experience under the guidance in cybersecurity. Moreover, one can practice their skills in the Virtual Labs provided by Bytecode Security under their premises.
With that, they will be able to get a certificate that will validate their skills in cyber security in front of the company they will be applying for work as a professional cyber security expert. What are you waiting for? Contact, Now!