Which is the final step in the seven-step Cyber Kill Chain?

• A. Reconnaissance
• B. Delivery
• C. Exploitation
• D. Actions on Objectives

Answer: (D)

The final step is Actions on Objectives, where the attacker uses the access they’ve gained to achieve their goals, such as exfiltrating data, altering or destroying systems, or maintaining presence to continue the mission. After reconnaissance, weaponization, delivery, exploitation, installation, and command-and-control, the attacker focuses on completing the objective they set out to accomplish. Reconnaissance is the information-gathering stage; delivery is how the payload reaches the target; exploitation is triggering the vulnerability to run code. Those stages occur earlier in the chain, while the last stage is all about executing the intended outcomes.