Which of the following network appliances will only detect and not prevent malicious network activity?

Question

Options

• AIDS
• BNetwork sniffer
• CIPS
• DFirewall

• A
  88% (29)
• B
  3% (1)
• C
  6% (2)
• D
  3% (1)

Explanation

An Intrusion Detection System (IDS) is a passive monitoring tool that analyzes network traffic and alerts administrators when suspicious activity is detected, but takes no action to block or stop it - making it detect-only by design.

Why the distractors are wrong:

• B (Network sniffer): A sniffer captures and analyzes packets but isn't specifically designed to detect malicious activity - it's a general traffic inspection tool, not a security appliance.
• C (IPS): An Intrusion Prevention System actively blocks malicious traffic in real time, not just detecting it.
• D (Firewall): A firewall enforces rules to allow or deny traffic, actively preventing unwanted connections.

Memory tip: Think of the "D" in IDS as "Detect only" - it watches and warns but never acts. Contrast with IPS where the "P" stands for "Prevent" - it stops threats in their tracks.

No community discussion yet for this question.