What type of incident is a security engineer responding to if they attempt to hack back after a compromise?

The appropriate response in this scenario is linked to the activity characterized by attempts to hack back after a compromise. This suggests a reaction to a security breach where unauthorized access has already occurred, typically seen with data being extracted or manipulated by an attacker.

In instances of data exfiltration, attackers often steal sensitive information from a system or network without detection. If a security engineer attempts to hack back, it is usually a response indicating that there has been a breach, and they are trying to regain control or mitigate the effects of the exfiltration.

This type of incident tends to involve sensitive data that has been compromised, resulting in serious risks for the organization and its stakeholders. Understanding this context underlines the severity of data exfiltration incidents and the measures that security professionals may contemplate, even though hack back is typically not advisable due to ethical and legal implications.