156-215.80 · Question #232
A digital signature:
The correct answer is A. Guarantees the authenticity and integrity of a message. This question tests the fundamental cryptographic purpose of a digital signature and what security properties it provides.
Question
A digital signature:
Options
- AGuarantees the authenticity and integrity of a message.
- BAutomatically exchanges shared keys.
- CDecrypts data to its original form.
- DProvides a secure key exchange mechanism over the Internet.
How the community answered
(16 responses)- A88% (14)
- B6% (1)
- C6% (1)
Why each option
This question tests the fundamental cryptographic purpose of a digital signature and what security properties it provides.
A digital signature is created by hashing a message and encrypting that hash with the sender's private key. Any recipient can verify authenticity - confirming the message came from the claimed sender because only the private key holder could have produced the valid signature - and integrity, because any modification to the message after signing will cause the hash comparison to fail upon verification.
Automatically exchanging shared keys describes the Diffie-Hellman key exchange protocol or similar mechanisms, which is a separate cryptographic function from signing.
Decrypting data to its original form describes the decryption operation performed with a symmetric or asymmetric key, not the purpose of a digital signature.
Providing a secure key exchange mechanism over the Internet describes protocols such as Diffie-Hellman or IKE used in IPsec/TLS, not the role of a digital signature.
Concept tested: Digital signature authenticity and integrity properties
Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/seccrypto/digital-signatures
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