Explain Data Handling Best Practices

Question 1

Answer 1

Verifying a source disk with an image made using AccessData FTK® Imager.

Question 2

Data breaches require

Answer 2

strong incident response procedures, as CompTIA A+ technicians play a key role in identifying, reporting, and mitigating security threats.

Question 3

Regulated data must comply with

Answer 3

relevant laws, and any unauthorized access, modification, or deletion—whether accidental or malicious—requires reporting to regulators and affected individuals.

Question 4

Personally identifiable information (PII)

Answer 4

includes data like names, phone numbers, and biometric details that can be used to identify or impersonate individuals, requiring careful handling to prevent identity theft.

Question 5

Personal government-issued information

Answer 5

such as Social Security numbers, passports, and driver’s licenses, is classified as personally identifiable information (PII) and is protected under privacy laws like the US Privacy Act.

Question 6

Healthcare data includes

Answer 6

medical records, insurance details, and test results, and can be anonymized or de-identified for research, but breaches can cause significant reputational damage.

Question 7

Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS)

Answer 7

mandates strict security measures for processing credit card transactions, protecting cardholder data and sensitive authentication information like CV2 and PINs.

Question 8

Employees must be trained to handle

Answer 8

personally identifiable information (PII) securely, avoiding unauthorized access, copying, or exposure to prevent data leaks and privacy breaches.

Question 9

Regulated data retention policies may require

Answer 9

companies to securely destroy data after a set period or retain it for compliance, ensuring proper logging and verification of destruction when applicable.

Question 10

Organizations must implement strict policies to detect and remove

Answer 10

prohibited content and unlicensed software from company workstations, ensuring compliance with security and legal regulations.

Question 11

Prohibited content on employee workstations includes

Answer 11

non-work-related data, obscene material, and illegally copied/pirated files, with acceptable use policies restricting internet misuse and personal communications.

Question 12

end-user license agreement (EULA)

Answer 12

governs software usage, restricting installation to specified terms, including personal versus commercial use, to prevent licensing violations.

Question 13

Corporate software licenses allow businesses to

Answer 13

install applications on multiple workstations legally, while compliance monitoring helps prevent unauthorized use and security risks.

Question 14

Ensuring valid software licenses requires businesses

Answer 14

to prevent misuse of personal licenses for corporate use and accurately match corporate licenses to the number of devices or users accessing the software, with inventory and management tools aiding compliance.

Question 15

Expired software licenses require

Answer 15

prompt removal from systems when usage rights lapse or the number of authorized devices/users decreases, making renewal tracking essential for compliance.

Question 16

Open-source licenses allow

Answer 16

free use, modification, and redistribution of software while ensuring access to source code, though specific terms may vary and commercial versions may include additional agreements.

Question 17

Digital Rights Management (DRM)

Answer 17

restricts the use of digital music and video files by licensing them to a limited number of devices, but enterprises must monitor for pirated content as DRM protections are often bypassed.

Question 18

Incident response in technical support involves

Answer 18

identifying and reporting security threats, such as malware infections, unauthorized data access, phishing attempts, DoS attacks, unlicensed software, and prohibited content on company devices.

Question 19

incident response plan (IRP)

Answer 19

defines procedures for handling security threats, with larger organizations relying on a Computer Security Incident Response Team (CSIRT) to manage incidents, while serious cases may require law enforcement involvement.

Question 20

Digital forensics involves

Answer 20

collecting latent computer-based evidence that requires specialized tools for interpretation, ensuring its integrity for legal proceedings.

Question 21

data integrity and evidence preservation

Answer 21

by documenting the scene, collecting live forensic data, creating forensic disk images, verifying authenticity with cryptographic hashes, and securely storing physical devices.

Question 22

chain of custody

Answer 22

form ensures evidence integrity by documenting its collection, handling, storage, and transport from the crime scene to the courtroom, preventing tampering or unauthorized access.

Question 23

Data destruction involves securely

Answer 23

Standard deletion methods do not completely erase data, making proper sanitization critical when repurposing or disposing of storage media to prevent unauthorized recovery.

Question 24

Disk erasing/wiping software

Answer 24

overwrites all data on a hard drive using zeroes or random patterns, preparing it for reuse, though the process is time-consuming and less effective for SSDs.

Question 25

Low-level formatting tools

Answer 25

reset disks to factory conditions, with **Secure Erase (SE)** marking HDD and SSD blocks as empty, while **Instant Secure Erase (ISE)/Crypto Erase** ensures complete sanitization by destroying encryption keys in self-encrypting drives (SEDs).

Question 26

Physical destruction methods like

Answer 26

**shredding, incinerating, and degaussing** effectively render data irretrievable, while outsourced vendors ensure secure disposal with certificates of destruction or recycling.