Introduction to Intrusion Prevention System Interview Questions

The intrusion prevention system can be defined as the tool or software that prohibits malicious network packets to make any changes in the existing system. The sole purpose of this technology’s existence is to ensure that any harmful traffic that may lead to making any hazardous changes in the system should not be allowed to get executed. Coming to the interview point, in order to crack any interview for the position in SOC, the candidate must be proficient with the tools like firewall, IPS, IDS, SIEM other technology. In this article, we will be focusing on the different types of interview questions that are asked very often on the Intrusion prevention system. Below are the very common questions or can be considered as sure shot questions while appearing in the interview for a role in SOC.

When we talk about questions based on the Intrusion detection system, there can be two types of questions: directly pointes to IPS and indirectly linked with IPS. In the list below, we will be focusing on both kinds of questions.

Part 1 -Intrusion Prevention System Interview Questions(Basic)

This first part covers basic Intrusion Prevention System Interview Questions and Answers.

1. Brief Intrusion prevention system?

Answer:
IPS is nothing but a tool that can be deployed in the network or host level with the purpose to protect the system from malicious traffic. Any of the harmful traffic coming to the network is filed and blocked by IPS. It works in conjunction with IDS in order to detect anomalies, and based on the outcome; it decides if the network packets have to be blocked.

2. What are the types of IPS?

Answer:
There are mainly four IPS types: network-based IPS, host-based IPS, wireless IPS, network-based IPS. Each of the IPS types has an entity separate role and the mainly divided based on the platform where it can be deployed. The functioning of each of the IPS is nearly the same and are slightly different.

3. What is the difference between IPS and IDS?

Answer:
IPS stands for Intrusion prevention system, while IDS stands for Intrusion Detection System. The role of IPS is to prevent the malicious network packet from getting executed, while the role of IDS is to confirm whether any packet is malicious or not. The IDS does not stop the packet from entering the network, but it just raises the alarm if any malicious traffic is witnessed. The IPS comes to work once they sense the raised the alarm. They just make it sure that the packet for which the alarm is raised should not be allowed to function in the network.

4. What are Host-based IPS?

Answer:
Host-based IPS can be defined as a tool that can be deployed in the host rather than getting deployed in the entire network. It protects the malicious activity on the host by blocking malicious traffic in the host. It is known as host-based IPS as it can be deployed only in the host and will not be able to serve the purpose of protecting the entire network.

5. Name some best IPS. Which one do you think is best, and why?

Answer:
Some of the best IPS available in the market are Sogan, OSSEC, Fail2ban, Zeek, etc. As per my understanding, the best IPS is the one that can be deployed on its expected platform to stop almost all of the malicious traffic from harming the system. Sogan is the best one due to its efficiency. It could be deployed in the system to prevent all the harmful packets. The best part about using Sogan is that it has the treatment solution files with malicious signature. It actually protects the network very effectively and also deployed in the networks of various large size organizations.

Part 2 –Intrusion Prevention System Interview Questions

Let us now have a look at the advanced Intrusion Prevention System Interview Questions and Answers.

6. Are you familiar with the Intrusion prevention system?

Answer:
I am ample cognizant of the IPS system. [Share or explain your working experience in IPS together with your current project]. I feel very confident while working with any of the IPS as I understand their core functionality. On a scale of 1-10, where 10 is for the best, I would rate myself 8. The reason for not giving 10 is because I am not aware of each and every single IP, which is less feasible at my stage. I rated myself 8 as for me, this rating is sheer optimal, and it will motivate me to achieve 10; that is what I want to focus on in the future.

7. You are familiar with Sogan, but we use different IPS in our organization. Do you think you will fit best for this position?

Answer:
Though the production company may vary, the core functioning of all the IPS is the same. I believe that I can be the best candidate for this position as I do understand the fundamentals of IPS. When it comes to working on the IPS other than Sogan, I will need a little KT just to understand the environment of the IPS that is being used in your organization, and right after that, I will be all set to work in your SOC.

8. What Are The Functions Of Intrusion Detection?

Answer:
The IPS are mainly concerned with monitoring and performing analysis on both the user and the system’s activity. The Intrusion prevention system also checks for the system’s configurations and tries to identify the vulnerability so that the system could be protected against it. It also keeps the check on data integrity by properly assessing the files and the system. One of its core responsibilities is to determine or recognize the attacks’ pattern to keep track of it so that if the same is encountered next time, it can take the appropriate action.

9. We know that IPS is dependent on IDS to understand the attack. How does IDS identify malicious traffic?

Answer:
The intrusion detection system works with the IPS to detect and prevent malicious traffic from harming the system. In order to identify the traffic, IDS uses anomalies detection under which is concerned with raising the alarm when any activity apart from the normal activity is done. The other approach is to understand the traffic signature, and these signatures are stored in the database.

10. What are the kinds of attacks from which IPS protects the network?

Answer:
The IPS prevents malicious traffic from making any kind of changes in the network that could be harmful. It protects the system from DDOS(distributed denial of attack), data breach, server shutdown and similar kinds of problems that could lead to hinder production.

Conclusion

The main point that should be focused on before appearing in an IPS professional interview is that you should be aware of what it is, what are its types, what are its functionalities, and how it can be integrated with other tools to work efficiently. Once you got the answer to these questions, you will see how it turns your interview into a wild card.

Quiz Result
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