Which of the following is the FIRST action that a system administrator should take when it is revealed during a penetration test that everyone in an organization has unauthorized access to a server ho

The correct answer is A. Immediately document the finding and report to senior management.. When a penetration test reveals that everyone in the organization has unauthorized access to a server holding sensitive data, this is a critical‑risk finding that affects the entire user base and likely violates policy and compliance requirements. The first step for the system ad

Submitted by kwame.gh· Mar 5, 2026Security Operations

Question

Which of the following is the FIRST action that a system administrator should take when it is revealed during a penetration test that everyone in an organization has unauthorized access to a server holding sensitive data?

Options

AImmediately document the finding and report to senior management.
BUse system privileges to alter the permissions to secure the server
CContinue the testing to its completion and then inform IT management
DTerminate the penetration test and pass the finding to the server management team

How the community answered

(54 responses)

A
81% (44)
B
9% (5)
C
2% (1)
D
7% (4)

Explanation

When a penetration test reveals that everyone in the organization has unauthorized access to a server holding sensitive data, this is a critical‑risk finding that affects the entire user base and likely violates policy and compliance requirements. The first step for the system administrator is to formally document the finding (including scope, impact, and evidence) and escalate it to senior management and the CISO, so they can decide on containment, remediation, and whether to pause or continue the test.

Topics

#Penetration testing#Incident response#Reporting#Vulnerability management

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