Knowledge Assessment #2 - Fundamentals of IT (ITFUNTST2-V2)

Mike is punching in his phone PIN code when he notices one of his co-workers standing close enough to see the numbers. What term best describes this potentially malicious behavior?

Shoulder surfing Correct Answer: Shoulder surfing. Mike's co-worker could be shoulder surfing to discover Mike's credentials. Incorrect Answers: Social enginnering. Social engineering uses people to gain access to company resources. Phishing. Phishing attacks use bogus claims to get people to give out their credentials. Tailgating. Tailgating means to slip into a secure place by following an authorized user closely.

Why should a business back up data?

To ensure data availability Correct Answer: To ensure data availability. A big IT industry push is to ensure high availability of all data and other essential resources. Backing up data helps make that happen whether the data consists of individual files or an entire operating system. Incorrect Answers: To ensure data encryption. Backup doesn't have anything to do with encryption. To ensure data security. This sounds good, but backing up isn't primarily about security. To ensure data stability. This sounds good, but backup only helps a company's stability.

Which type of variable is being created with the following code? $stock_codes="MSFT", "APPL", "GOOGL"

Array Correct Answer: Array. This type of variable is used to store multiple items in a single variable. Programming loops can iterate through array contents, or individual array elements can be references, such as $stock_codes[0], where 0 is the first array element. Some programming languages start referencing arrays at 1 instead of 0. Incorrect Answers: Float. This data type is used to store numbers with decimal points. Boolean. This data type is used for true/false indicators, such as determining whether a customer is eligible for a discount. String. This data type is used to store text such as last name or contract ID.

You are looking over code created by another software developer. As you test the code, you notice a particular variable only returns values of either true or false. What type of variable is this?

Boolean Correct Answer: Boolean. This data type is used for true/false indicators, such as a column named Insured. Incorrect Answers: String. This data type is used to store text such as last name or contract ID. Float: This data type is used to store numbers with decimal points.Integer. This data type is used to store whole numbers (no fractions). The upper and lower numeric limit will depend on the specific database solution.

You are involved with providing input in the design of a new small office facility in a rural setting. The fastest possible Internet connection over long distances is required. What should you recommend?

Fiber optic Correct Answer: Fiber optic. This cable type transmits light instead of electricity using plastic fibers over longer distances than is possible with copper-based cables. Some rural areas may not have the infrastructure in place for fiber-optic connectivity. Generally speaking, fiber provides the most network throughput in the order of gigabits per second (Gbps) or even terabits per second (Tbps), where giga implies billions and tera implies trillions. Incorrect Answers: DSL. Digital subscriber line (DSL) uses existing telephone wiring to transmit data to and from the Internet at different frequencies than used by standard telephone equipment. Satellite. While convenient when no other options exist, such as when at sea, this will not provide the fastest possible Internet connectivity. Satellite network throughput varies widely from kilobits per second (Kbps) to megabits per second (Mbps).Bluetooth. This is short-range (approximately 10-meter) wireless solution between Bluetooth-enabled devices such as a smartphone and speaker, headphones and computer, and so on.

Amy wants to find the latest firmware for her new laptop. Where can she find this information? (Choose the best answer.)

OEM web site Correct Answer: OEM web site. You should always go straight to the manufacturer for updates and upgrades; extra machine utility software can be acquired from OEM and third-party vendor sites. Incorrect Answers: Internet forum. Although this option will help, it's not the best answer here. Internet search engine. Absolutely do this, but you'll most likely just end up at the source. Technical community groups. Although this option might help, it's not the best answer here.

While browsing the Internet, a threatening message suddenly appears on Margot's screen, demanding a payment. If she doesn't pay, the software will disable her system. What type of malware infection hit Margot's computer?

Ransomware Correct Answer: Ransomware. Ransomware is malicious software that holds a computer hostage for money. Incorrect Answers: Adware. Adware is usually a bunch of ads targeted to a user. Spyware. Spyware hides, sending information back to the source. Virus. A virus can be any number of types of malicious software.

Donald was happily using the internet when his computer screen flashed a big warning message saying he had to send money to a site or all the files on his computer would be destroyed. What kind of twisted software causes this?

Ransomware Correct Answer: Ransomware. This is particularly nasty malware. Incorrect Answers: Spyware. Spyware typically tracks your viewing habits. Trojan. A Trojan horse is software that seems useful but contains malicious code. Virus. A virus can do damage, but it's more mindless.

Babs' laptop can connect wirelessly to the Internet via her SOHO router, but when she turns off wireless and tries to connect to the router with a cable, she does not get a network connection. What should she do first?

Check for link light activity Correct Answer: Check for link light activity. If there's no link light activity, then the problem boils down to the cable, the NIC, or the port on the router. Incorrect Answers:Although rebooting is often the answer when something doesn't work correctly, in this case it's not the first thing to try. The router has to be powered up for the wireless connections to work. Turning on airplane mode kills the radio signals and would stop wireless connections. It doesn't have anything to do with the wired connection.

Which programming concept uses a named item whose value does not change?

Constant Correct Answer: Constant. This is used by programmers for items whose value will not change during code execution, such as a constant named PI that has a value of 3.14159. Incorrect Answers: Variable. A named item in program code whose value can change during code execution, such as a variable named CurrentFileName.Array. This is a type of variable containing multiple items of the same type, such as a list of stock values or city names. Object. This is a complex programming construct (compared to a simple string variable for example) that consists of properties and methods. An object could contain details about a file, a network connection, a database record, or, really, anything.

Sofia is concerned about theft of her laptop and does not want a thief to have easy access to her banking and e-mail. Which of the following precautions could she take to mitigate this issue?

Disable the web browser's autofill Correct Answer: Disable the web browser's autofill. Disabling autofill requires the user to input sensitive information each time. Incorrect Answers: Disable certificates in the web browser. This won't protect user credentials. Remove all browsers except Mozilla Firefox. Removing legacy browsers, such as Internet Explorer in Windows and Safari in macOS, won't stop theft and information gathering. Turn off the guest account. The guest account is off by default.

Your software code needs to process a large list of products stored within an array variable. What should you do? (Choose the best answer.)

Loop through the array Correct Answer: Loop through the array. Use a looping construct, such as for, foreach, while, and so on, to go through each array element for processing. Incorrect Answers: Export the array to a file, Use an if statement, Create an object. None of these is as efficient as looping through the already existing array variable.

Which of the following are interpreted computer programming languages?

Python Correct Answer: Python. This is an example of an interpreted language that does not have to be compiled, although an interpreter software module must be present to run the code. Incorrect Answers: C, Java. These are compiled programming languages that result in one or more program files. Assembly. This is neither compiled nor interpreted since the code is already in machine language.

Cindy needs to describe ransomware to her boss. What explanation should she use?

Ransomware demands payment to unlock a user's system Correct Answer: Ransomware demands payment to unlock a user's system. Incorrect Answers: Ransomware attacks a system and sends personally identifiable information to the source. Many types of malware reflect this pattern but not ransomware. Ransomware masquerades as a benign application but secretly captures keystrokes. This type of malware is called a Trojan horse. Ransomware redirects web browsers to predetermined sites designed to spoof real sites. This kind of behavior is more indicative of a browser hijacking attack.

Your web browser performance has suffered after a few weeks of installing new free software. What should you do to improve web browser performance?

Remove browser add-ons Correct Answer: Remove browser add-ons. Often, installing free software also installs unnecessary browser add-ons by default, which impedes browser performance. Incorrect Answers: Remove the malware scanner. This is recommended only if it is part of the free downloaded software. Remove proxy server settings. This won't affect performance and isn't related to installing free software. Remove script-blocking settings. This won't affect performance and isn't related to installing free software.

Tammy discovers that her Facebook, e-mail, and Twitter accounts have been hacked. What common security mistake can lead to multiple accounts getting hacked?

Reusing credentials Correct Answer: Credential reuse means using the same username and password for multiple services. A hacker has to crack the credentials only once to get access to a lot of resources. Incorrect Answers: Enabling cookies. The default for all web browsers doesn't do more than keep track of various information about sites you visit. Disabling history. Disabling history stops a browser from tracking your site visits; it doesn't pose a security threat. Using incognito mode. Using incognito mode stops a browser from tracking your site visits; it doesn't pose a security threat.

Which of the following is a six-step framework used by software developers to create and maintain software solutions?

SDLC Correct Answer: SDLC. The software development life cycle is a structured framework consisting of the following phases: Requirement Analysis & Planning, Design, Coding, Testing, Deployment, and Maintenance. Incorrect Answers: SLA. Service level agreements are contracts between cloud customers and providers that specify expected uptime and performance when using a specific cloud service. GPS. The Global Positioning System uses Earth-orbiting satellites to allow communication from anywhere on the planet's surface, including while at sea. SaaS. Software as a Service refers to cloud-based end-user application software.

You are creating a custom application that will process orders from a web site. Your code needs a variable that will store mobile phone numbers for customers. What data type should you use for this variable?

String Correct Answer: String. This data type is used to store text such as last name or phone number. Because phone numbers will never have arithmetic operations applied to them, they should not be stored as numbers. Incorrect Answers: Float. This data type is used to store numbers with decimal points. Integer. This data type is used to store whole numbers (no fractions). The upper and lower numeric limit will depend on the specific database solution. Boolean: This data type is used for true/false indicators, such as determining whether a customer is eligible for a discount.

Your colleague Lain has issued the "drop table" command against a customer table. What does this mean?

The customer table has been deleted Correct Answer: The customer table has been deleted. Incorrect Answers: The customer table is not accessible over the network, The customer table is accessible over the network, The customer table has been exported. Dropping a table does not result in any of these symptoms.

Sarah takes a tech call from a frantic user who claims that the printer won't print. At Sarah's suggestion that the printer requires special paper, the user takes a moment to switch the paper and can now print. What printer technology must this be?

Thermal Correct Answer: Thermal. Thermal printers heat spots on special paper to create printouts. Incorrect Answers: Impact. Impact, or dot-matrix, printers strike a ribbon of ink to make marks on paper of many types. Inkjet. Inkjet printers can print on an amazing array of materials. Laser. Laser printers print on many types of paper.