CompTIA CASP+ Practice Test

Perfect Forward Secrecy is primarily used to enhance which aspect of communication?

1. Authentication

2. Confidentiality

3. Integrity

4. Availability

The correct answer is: Confidentiality

Perfect Forward Secrecy (PFS) is a feature of secure communication protocols that ensures that session keys are not compromised even if the long-term private keys are exposed in the future. This means that each session generates a unique encryption key, which significantly enhances confidentiality. By employing this cryptographic principle, PFS guarantees that past communication remains secure even if current keys are compromised. In practical terms, if an attacker were to gain access to the server's private key at a later date, they would not be able to decrypt previously captured communications, as the keys used for those sessions were unique and not derived from the long-term key. In contrast, authentication deals with verifying identities, integrity ensures that data remains unchanged during transmission, and availability refers to maintaining systems and data in a usable state. While all these aspects are important in secure communications, the primary objective of Perfect Forward Secrecy specifically aligns with enhancing the confidentiality of the data being communicated.