Certified Achievement Unlocked! Proud to earn my CompTIA Certification

Hello CINners,

A little something for you DNS aficionados! Ever since I had my first read of "DNS and BIND",
almost 20 years ago, I've been intrigued about this service! Of course, when I had that first read,
security didn't have nearly the concern that it does today. Well, it's a new day!!! Okay, that's
enough reminiscing. On with the show -)

DNS (Domain Name System) attacks exploit vulnerabilities in the DNS infrastructure, which translates domain names (like example.com) into IP addresses. These attacks aim to disrupt, intercept, or redirect user traffic. Here are the main types of DNS attacks:

1. DNS Spoofing (Cache Poisoning)​

• Description: Attacker injects false DNS records into a resolver's cache, redirecting users to malicious sites.
• Impact: Users are tricked into visiting fraudulent websites, often leading to phishing or malware distribution.

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2. DNS Amplification Attack​

• Description: A type of DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attack that leverages open DNS resolvers to overwhelm a target with large amounts of traffic.
• Impact: The target's servers are rendered unavailable due to excessive traffic.

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3. DNS Tunneling​

• Description: Encodes non-DNS traffic (e.g., HTTP) into DNS queries, often used for data exfiltration or command-and-control (C2) communication.
• Impact: Sensitive data can be stolen or malicious actions executed covertly.

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4. Domain Hijacking​

• Description: An attacker gains unauthorized control over a domain by compromising its registrar account or exploiting vulnerabilities.
• Impact: The domain can be redirected, defaced, or taken offline.

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5. DNS Reflection Attack​

• Description: Similar to amplification attacks, but it uses spoofed requests to make the DNS server send responses to the victim's IP address.
• Impact: Overwhelms the victim's server, causing service disruptions.

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6. NXDOMAIN Attack​

• Description: Overwhelms DNS resolvers by sending a high volume of queries for non-existent domains.
• Impact: Depletes server resources, causing legitimate requests to fail.

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7. DNS Flood Attack​

• Description: Inundates a DNS server with a high volume of queries to exhaust its resources.
• Impact: Causes the DNS server to crash or become unresponsive.

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8. Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) Attack​

• Description: An attacker intercepts and manipulates DNS traffic between the user and the resolver.
• Impact: Users are redirected to malicious sites, potentially leading to credential theft or malware infections.

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9. Registrar Hijacking​

• Description: Attackers compromise a domain registrar's system to alter DNS records or transfer domain ownership.
• Impact: Entire domains can be taken over or redirected.

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10. DNS Typosquatting​

• Description: Registering domains that resemble legitimate ones (e.g., googgle.com instead of google.com) to exploit user typos.
• Impact: Users can be redirected to phishing sites or exposed to ads/malware.

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11. Fast Flux DNS​

• Description: Frequently changing IP addresses in DNS records to avoid detection and takedown.
• Impact: Used for botnets, phishing, and other malicious activities.

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Mitigation Strategies:​

• DNSSEC (Domain Name System Security Extensions): Adds cryptographic signatures to DNS records.
• Rate Limiting: Limits the number of queries a DNS server can process per client.
• Monitoring and Logging: Tracks DNS activity for anomalies.
• Firewalls and Access Control: Blocks malicious traffic and restricts open resolvers.
• Patch Management: Keeps DNS server software up-to-date. I know you CINners are on top of this one!!!!

This CVE got my attention. Thought I would share it with the CIN community.

https://media.licdn.com/dms/image/v...t=l8pAzFzE8fFZWwyhwWJt1BlZpKWQ3xkomPrkfA_2kZ4

The three pillars of cybersecurity:
1) People
2) Processes
3) Technology

These three elements/components do interconnect to form
a strong security framework!

Is this covered in any of the CompTIA cybersecurity related courses?

Hello. Does anyone know when the Cloud+ CV0-003 exam will no longer be available now that the Cloud+ CV0-004 exam has been made available? The 004 exam was originally scheduled to be available in September but was not released until mid-October. I have students who will be preparing to take Cloud+ in March 2025, but no one outside of the CompTIA cert master has study material for the CV0-004 version of the exam.

Thanks for your help

Hello CINners,

Are CVEs (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures) covered in any CompTIA courses?
What about CWE (Common Weakness Enumeration) - is this covered in any
CompTIA course?

What's prompting the question more than anything is my recent (like 5 minutes ago)
discovery of CWE.

PearsonVue has the CA1-005: CompTIA SecurityX Certification Beta Exam listed under "Other exams." When I attempted to register for it, it stated "Scheduling for this exam will begin in the future." Apparently, registration doesn't start until May 17, 2024.

My current CASP+ doesn't expire until 2028 because I used my CISM to renew it, so I don't need it right away. Plus, I'm an Adjunct Instructor for CompTIA so I can get a free voucher when the exam goes live. I'm posting this so that others can take advantage of the beta exam.

Good morning/evening/night everyone,

Just caught up with the DataX TTT (great job, RJ!) and @Stephen Schneiter 's comments about CIN membership and the email address we use prompted me to look at my profile.

When I signed up a few years ago, I used my personal email address and for some time there was no issue with getting exam vouchers but lately I didn't receive any. I put one training provider I work for in the profile but it no longer seems sufficient. Now I tried to change my email address but it wouldn't let me.

Is there a way to change the email address to one supplied by the training provider?

And if that's not the issue, any pointers would be very much appreciated!

Many thanks,

Andreas

Seeking certified CompTIA instructors to create and deliver pre recorded instructor led courses for new Comptia content scheduled to be released in 2025. Please reply to [email protected] with a link or sample file of existing content created and delivered.

Hello CINners,

When I'm listening to presentations at cybersecurity events,
there are some common terms that are used, such as:
- vulnerability
- threat
- attack surface
- attach vector

Just to name a very few.

Can you define these terms without having to launch your favorite
search engine? Do you have a definition in your brain, that would
allow you to articulate to the someone, what the term means?

I'd like to have you define one (or all) of the terms that I have listed,
based on your understanding. Just imagine that you're in conversation
with someone, and you spit out one of those terms, and the other
person ask you to define the term.

Now if you're going to lookup the term(s) using some search engine,
or dig into some book, and then pass that on to me, don't waste that
bandwidth

This lab has no internet access... lab can't be completed!

Hello, I'm searching for an CompTIA A+ instructor to teach our online courses to our students in Cape Town, South Africa.

Hello CINners,

Have you been to the Dark Web? How did you get there?
I'd like to pay it a visit.. What's are the logistics? What is
the process? What are the mechanics? What's the address?

I'm looking for responses from those who have ACTUALLY
been. Please don't provide me a response that you retrieved
from your favorite search engine!!!!

Thank you

@Stephen Schneiter thank you for your efforts and your passion to make sure these platforms is functioning effectively.
Please with your tie schedule, can you give us updates when cloud + voucher is to be distributed.

Recent postings relating to changes at CompTIA had me thinking about the great days of the late '90s and early 2000s. I recall with fondness Microsoft's AATP program. Googling the program, I found a useful history of the program, well worth reading. Back in the good old days, many of us in the academic world sought that Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) designation, with access to free exam vouchers and no charge for gaining the MCT designation. The cool thing was that for those of us who held the MCT designation, we were grandfathered, gaining the CompTIA CTT designation without taking a written exam or providing a teaching demonstration.

Things changed and at some point Microsoft started charging an annual fee in order to retain the MCT designation. That is when I decided to no longer carry that designation. My recollection was the fee was $500. Research indicates that "The MCT Program Fee was waived in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This waiver to the standard MCT annual fee remains in effect." Some of you may want to consider joining up to spice up your resume, given the cost elimination.

This of course has me thinking about the CTT+ designation that is, at least from what I've been able to find, no longer available (based on this posting on CIN).

Hello CINners,

What would you say are the top 8 cyberattacks that have occurred in 2024 thus far?

Of those top 8, which is #1?

Does this look like a good depiction of these three levels of the web?

I've been avoiding an online bickering with someone on Reddit. Thought I'd put it to my co-teachers instead.

The gist of it:

• Person A asks "I have read the exam objectives, but what takes priority based off of the older exam?"
• I respond that we cannot divulge such information due to our NDAs; we cannot say what the exam focuses on or covers.
• Person A responds that they're not looking for dumps or cheat sheets, just for guidance on which topics to focus study on.
• I counter again that this is still contrary to our NDAs: everything on the objectives is fair game and the objectives provide weighting per objective.
• Person B chastises me, saying "Instructors and fellow learners can absolutely make suggestions on topics that should be focused on, like Linux file permissions".

That's where I cut out and decide not to continue.

Me personally I hard disagree with B, because that would still be using my inside knowledge to steer someone's learning. I know exactly which topics were focused on in the exams I took, but I'm not going to tell because that laser focuses the students the "the right" parts of the exam. Sure the exam objectives are supposed to be evenly used, but from experience I know certain topics will get priority.

So what's your take on this?

Hello CIN Community!

I'm reaching out to connect with fellow instructors who share a passion for making a difference in underserved communities, particularly those at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). As members of the CIN, we have a unique opportunity to collectively empower those communities with the skills and certifications needed to excel in cybersecurity and IT.

I'm currently working on an initiative to develop and support cyber range and training programs for local HBCUs in Baltimore, MD. The long-term goal is to scale these programs across all 100+ HBCUs. The goal is to create immersive, hands-on experiences that span foundational IT skills to advanced cybersecurity certifications, leveraging CompTIA's courseware and certifications as a central part of the curriculum.

If you're interested in contributing to this vision or if you know of any similar programs in the space, I'd love to hear from you. Specifically, I'm looking to:

• Identify CompTIA Instructors interested in partnering on or mentoring for these programs
• Gather insights from those who may already be involved in similar initiatives
• Source any existing resources, best practices, or ideas that would help make this program impactful and sustainable

Together, we can help bridge the IT and cybersecurity skills gap and open new doors for talented students in these communities. Please reach out here or via a direct message ([email protected]) if you're interested or have resources to share. In the meantime, I will be scouring the forums for ideas and similar discussions.

Looking forward to collaborating,

Brandon Royal, MSCy, CSIE, GSTRT, CISSP

Thoughts?

Hello CINners,

I can see why I'd want to use a VPN when I'm away from home.
However, I ain't thinking about using a VPN when I am at home.

Is there anyone in the community that uses a VPN, when on their
home Internet connection - simply because the OS on the computer
is Windows?

Greetings!!

@Stephen Schneiter

I wanted to follow up regarding my request to update my email for my CIN membership. It’s been some time since I initially reached out, and the change still appears to be pending.

Hello! I am looking to purchase a few Tech+ vouchers. Are those available yet? I can't find them on the Academic store or the CompTIA store. Anyone have an idea of when they will be available? I am a bit leery that I am doing the curriculum and there is not cert to buy. It was a big sell to run this course!

Thank you

I'd like to get some input from the CIN community regarding Cyber Threats.
What do you see as top ones???