CompTIA CASP+ Practice Test

Which improvement would likely enhance data confidentiality for a networked environment?

1. Data deduplication

2. Transport encryption

3. Improving access control lists

4. Implementing a new firewall

The correct answer is: Transport encryption

Transport encryption is a significant improvement for enhancing data confidentiality in a networked environment. This method secures data as it travels across the network, making it unreadable to any unauthorized individuals who might intercept it during transmission. By utilizing protocols such as TLS (Transport Layer Security) or SSL (Secure Sockets Layer), sensitive information is encrypted, ensuring that only the intended recipient can decrypt and access the data. This layer of security is crucial, especially when dealing with sensitive or confidential information that needs protection from potential eavesdropping or man-in-the-middle attacks. Other options, while beneficial in various contexts, do not directly address confidentiality in terms of data during transmission. Data deduplication, for instance, focuses on reducing storage costs and storage efficiency rather than the protection of data in transit. Improving access control lists enhances security by restricting which users can access certain resources, but it does not encrypt data during transmission. Implementing a new firewall helps in guarding against unauthorized access to the network, but it typically does not encrypt data or ensure confidentiality for data being transmitted over the network. Therefore, transport encryption stands out as the most effective means of ensuring that data remains confidential while it is being communicated across potentially insecure networks.