Question

A security analyst is asked to evaluate the security posture of a newly acquired company's public-facing customer portal server before it is integrated into the corporate network. The analyst has network access to the host but no documentation about its configuration, installed software, or exposure. Which action should the analyst perform FIRST to begin evaluating the asset's security posture?

Accepted Answer

Enumerate the asset's running services, open ports, and installed software versions to establish its attack surface

Answer

Immediately apply the corporate golden image to overwrite the existing configuration

Answer

Deploy the server into the production VLAN so live traffic can be monitored for anomalies

Answer

Purchase a cyber-risk insurance policy to transfer the residual risk of the unknown asset