Certified Ethical Hacker CEH · Free Practice Question Medium

Question 10

Which of the following best describes privilege escalation?
  • A A. The process of stealing sensitive data from a system or network
  • B B. The process of gaining access to a system or network by exploiting vulnerabilities
  • C C. The process of gaining higher-level access or privileges than an attacker should have after gaining access to a system or application with limited user permissions
  • D D. The process of taking control of a user's computer and using it to carry out attacks on other systems
Reveal correct answer

Correct answer: C

Explanation

Correct Answer: C. The process of gaining higher-level access or privileges than an attacker should have after gaining access to a system or application with limited user permissions Explanation: Privilege escalation is a security vulnerability that occurs when an attacker gains access to a system or application with limited user permissions and then gains higher-level access or privileges than they should have. There are several techniques hackers can use to escalate privileges, including exploiting unpatched software vulnerabilities, bypassing access controls, and stealing user credentials. Once they have escalated their privileges, hackers can cause serious damage to a system, steal valuable data, or use the system as a platform for launching further attacks.

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