CompTIA CySA+ Exam CS0-002: WAF Log Analysis

WAF Log Analysis

Question

While analyzing logs from a WAF, a cybersecurity analyst finds the following: GET /form.php?id=463225%2b%2575%256e%2569%256f%256e%2b%2573%2574%2box3133333731,1223,1224&name=&state=IL Which of the following BEST describes what the analyst has found?

Answers

Explanations

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A. B. C. D.

D.

The log entry provided in the question shows a GET request to a web application firewall (WAF). GET is a request method used by HTTP to retrieve resources identified by a URL. In this case, the requested URL is "/form.php" and it includes query parameters such as "id", "name", and "state".

The value of the "id" parameter in the URL is "463225%2b%2575%256e%2569%256f%256e%2b%2573%2574%2box3133333731,1223,1224". This value is URL encoded, which means that special characters are replaced with their corresponding percent-encoded values. In this case, the plus sign (+) is replaced with %2b, the percent sign (%) is replaced with %25, and so on. Decoding this value would result in "463225+union+st%box13371,1223,1224".

The presence of the word "union" in the decoded value is a red flag because it is commonly used in SQL injection attacks. An attacker could be attempting to inject SQL code into the form.php script in order to bypass authentication or access sensitive data.

Therefore, the BEST answer is D. This is an encoded WAF bypass. The log entry indicates that an attacker is attempting to bypass the WAF's security controls by encoding the malicious payload in the URL. The cybersecurity analyst should investigate this request further and take appropriate actions to prevent a successful attack.