Completing a master of science in cyber security may seem like a task. But post the completion of degree, students have to go through a challenging step - Interview. Whether it is for an entry into an institution for advanced learning programmes, or jobs, or internships, getting through the interview is a tough job. Here, in this post, we shall cover the top cyber security interview questions that will give you an in-depth idea on how to prepare for your interview. Any aspiring individual can prepare their answers aligning with the following cyber security interview questions.

Top Cyber security Interview Questions:

The following list of cyber security interview questions is not exhaustive, and aspirants may further add any question they feel is crucial. We shall categorize the questions based on the expertise level, that will help you prepare accordingly.


Beginners Level Top Cyber Security Interview Questions:

What is cybersecurity? Why is Cyber Security significant today?
Can you define the terms-Virus, Malware, and Ransomware?
Define Threat, Vulnerability, and Risk and their differences.
Explain Phishing by giving an appropriate example.
Can you explain the mechanism of Firewalls protecting Network Security?
Explain VPN and its uses.
What is 2FA, and how is it important?
Explain Encryption and Decryption.
How is IDS different from IPS?
Explain social engineering with an example.
Explain DDoS attack
Differentiate symmetric from asymmetric encryption?
How can you prevent a Man-In-The-Middle attack?
Define Honeypot.
What is a brute force attack?
What are the common cyber threats today?
What is the role of patch management in maintaining security?

Intermediate Level Cyber Security Interview Questions

What is a Public Key Infrastructure (PKI)?
What are cross-site scripting and SQL injection?
Explain the operation of threat detection systems.
What are the principles of ethical hacking?
What is risk assessment?
Explain incident response and its management.
Define the Secure Socket Layer (SSL) and its methods of working.
Define network sniffing.
Define Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) System.
Explain the concept of endpoint security.
Discuss the role of artificial intelligence in cybersecurity.
What are the challenges in cloud security?
Is penetration testing different from vulnerability assessments?
Define Security Operations Center (SOC).
Advanced-Level Cyber Security Interview Questions
Explain Advanced Persistent Threats (APT).
How do you secure a large distributed network?
Is forensics essential in cybersecurity?
Explain network protocol security and its intricacies.
How will you secure a DevOps environment.
Explain the concept of micro-segmentation in network security.
Discuss the challenges of securing big data environments.
How do you manage supply chain risks?
Explain the concept of container security.
How do you ensure compliance with international data protection laws (like GDPR)?
Discuss the future trends in cybersecurity.
What are the ethical considerations in cybersecurity?
Discuss the challenges in securing wireless networks.
Define quantum cryptography. Does it impact cyber security?
Explain the concept of federated identity management.
Explain the security of a hybrid cloud environment.
How does machine learning detect cyber threats?
Define threat intelligence and its application.
What is endpoint detection and response (EDR)?

Your Master of science in Cyber security will be of massive help for an interview, as they would have gained mastery of the core concepts during the course.