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Monday, April 17, 2023

Top 15 Cyber Security and Information Security Interview Questions and Answers

Hello guys, If you are preparing for Cyber Security Engineer interviews or just want to learn more about Cyber Security you have come to the right place. Earlier, I have shared best Cyber Security courses and free Cyber Security tutorials and in this article, I am goin to share frequently asked Cyber Security interview questions with answers so that you can revise essential Cyber Security concepts quickly before your interviews. There is no doubt that cybersecurity jobs are the only IT domain that has never experienced a recession yet because companies have a lot of sensitive data in their servers and database so anyone can take advantage of the security weaknesses and exploit them. That's why there is also high demand for Cyber Security experts, but clearing a Cyber Security Job interview is not easy.

It's not enough that you have worked in Cyber Security and solved some practical problems if you cannot answer basic questions about Cyber Security, Cryptography, Web Security vulnerabilities, Network Security, popular tools for Cyber Security like Wireshark etc. 

These are the concepts which are fundamental to any Cyber Security job but they are not easy to answer if you haven't practiced or revise them before your interviews that's where these interview questions and answers will help you. 

I have also included only the most fundamentals of questions so that you can revise them in 5 to 10 minutes but if you guys wants more advanced and in-depth Cybersecurity questions, do leave comments and I will update this article with more Cyber Security questions

You can also share the latest questions asked to you on your Cyber Security interviews (if you not signed any NDA or Non disclosure agreements) that will help all of us who are preparing for Cyber Security job. 

These questions are also great for beginners who wants to explore Cyber Security but not sure where to start. I have learned a lot of technology just by looking at interview questions and then researching and learning underlying concepts, but if you are a complete beginner, you can also join any of these best free Cyber Security courses to start with.  These courses are free and provide more structured and guided learning experience. 



15 Frequently Asked Cyber Security Interview Questions with Answers

Suppose you have learned cybersecurity before, and you are looking for some of the interview questions to test your knowledge in this domain. In that case, you can complete this article for the most 15 asked questions about cybersecurity in the job interview.

1. What is Cyber Security?

Cybersecurity is the process that will protect your servers, network, computer, program, and data from being hacked and aims to reduce cyber-attacks and gain access to their infrastructure from unauthorized people.

2. What is Cryptography?

Cryptography is the use of encryption to secure the communication between two people (Sender & Receiver), which no one can see their data and information being exchanged.

3. What is the difference between hashing and encryption?

Both techniques are used to convert the data into an unreadable format. Still, the encryption will use a password to change the data format, and it can convert it back to its original content, known as decryption. Hashing can not get it back to its original form and is used to protect the database password.

4. What is the Firewall?

In simple words, a Firewall is a device that monitors the traffic going in/out of your local network and provides security protection against cyber attacks by shielding any unnecessary or malicious traffic to your computer and devices.

5. What is the CIA triad?

The CIA triad is one of organizations' most used and adopted models to guide information security policies. It contains three things:

1- Confidentiality: Meaning the user data will only be accessible by authorized people or organizations.

2- Integrity: You ensure that nobody (unauthorized people) has modified the user's data. If unauthorized people do this, you should convert it back to its original and not corrupted.

3- Availability: Meaning the data is always available for the users whenever they ask for it.


Top 15 CyberSecurity and Information Security Interview Questions with Answers



6. What is social engineering attack?

Social engineering is the process of taking advantage of human weaknesses by manipulating the person to give the attacker valuable information. It could provide him with access to his computer or, worse, like the company infrastructure.

7. What is SSL encryption?

SSL encryption is the standard for websites to encrypt the communication between the server and the user's browser if the SSL certificate is installed.

8. Does the SSL safe?

The SSL is a secure connection that uses robust encryption algorithms, but it ensures that the data is only safe in transit, and it requires to be encrypted if you plan to store them in the database.

9. What is SQL injection?

SQL injection is a web vulnerability that makes the attacker execute a malicious SQL statement to exploit the server database and take control over this information that he shouldn't access.

10. What is Cross-Site scripting?

Cross-Site scripting is a web vulnerability that allows the attacker to inject malicious code in the client-side to execute malicious code in the victim's web browser. You can use tools such as Burpsuite to find this vulnerability on a particulate website.

11. Explain phishing attack

This attack is considered a type of social engineering where the hacker attempts to steal the user's login credentials, credit card info, banking details, and the list is endless. When you type your data in the fake page, you will be redirected to the original page, but the data is sent to the attacker.

12. Explain the 2FA

2-factor authentication is an extra layer of security that helps users protect their accounts by providing information other than username and password. Only these people have like getting a text message on your phone number or security questions.

13. Explain OWASP top 10

OWASP or Open Web Application Security Project, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving website security. They constantly update their report on the ten most critical security risks.

14. What is port scanning?

This process is used a lot among hackers to discover the open ports and identify the vulnerable software in that network or computer to take advantage of.

15. What is Metasploit?

Metasploit is a framework developed using the Ruby language, and it can execute codes on the victim machine taking advantage of the vulnerability of that device.


That's all about the 15 essential Cyber Security interview questions with Answers. Make sure to study more than these available questions and do more preparation before you attend your cybersecurity job interview. Finally, end the interview with a short introduction about your skills and why you fit this role inside their organization.


Other Interview Question and Answers You may like to explore

Thanks for reading this article so far. If you like these Cyber Security and Information Security Interview questions then please share with your friends and colleagues. If you have any doubt or questions you can drop them down in the comments and let someone else answer them; you can have a discussion too.

P. S. - If you are new to Cyber Security world and want to learn Cyber Security and IT Security in depth then I also suggest you to join a comprehensive online training course. If you need recommends you can checkout these best Cyber Security Courses and Certifications to choose the one you like. 

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