An attacker has discovered an organization's web server is vulnerability to Shellshock. The attack runs the following command on a Linux box against the server: Which of the following BEST describes…

Question

Options

• AImplement x.508 certificates for mutual authentication.
• BUse NTLM and send hashes over the network.
• CConfigure LDAP to authenticate user agents.
• DReduce the privileges of the user running the web-server daemon.

• A
  78% (35)
• B
  7% (3)
• C
  4% (2)
• D
  11% (5)

Explanation

Shellshock is a critical Bash vulnerability that allows attackers to inject commands through environment variables passed via HTTP headers (e.g., User-Agent, Referer). Implementing X.509 certificates for mutual TLS authentication (A) prevents unauthenticated clients from reaching the vulnerable Bash interpreter by requiring both the server and the client to present valid certificates before any request is processed-effectively blocking untrusted attackers from sending the malicious headers that trigger Shellshock. While patching Bash is the definitive fix (not listed as an option), of the choices given, mutual authentication is the most effective preventive control as it restricts access to the attack surface entirely. NTLM hashes (B) and LDAP user-agent authentication (C) are not standard web server controls for this scenario. Reducing daemon privileges (D) is a compensating control that limits damage if exploited but does not prevent the attack itself.

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