What is a VPN and what security benefit does it provide?

• A. A hardware switch used for segmenting networks.
• B. A method for user authentication without encryption.
• C. A software that encrypts at rest data on disk.
• D. A secure tunnel for remote access and site-to-site connections, protecting traffic from eavesdropping.

Answer: (D)

A VPN creates a secure, encrypted tunnel over an untrusted network, like the Internet, to connect your device to a remote network or another site. The encryption protects data as it travels, so eavesdroppers cannot read it, and the endpoints can be authenticated to prevent impersonation. This setup enables safe remote access and site-to-site connections, making traffic private and protected from interception or tampering as it moves between networks.

The other options don’t fit because a hardware switch is about forwarding network traffic in a local network, not encryption; a method for user authentication without encryption would be insecure and fails to protect data in transit; and encrypting data at rest protects stored data on disk, not traffic traveling over a network.