What sort of security does a Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) offer?

Question

Options

• AIt provides digital certificates which can be used to digitally sign documents. Such signatures irrefutably
• BHaving a PKI shows customers that a web-based business is secure.
• CBy providing agreements, procedures and an organization structure, a PKI defines which person or which
• DA PKI ensures that backups of company data are made on a regular basis.

• A
  2% (1)
• C
  95% (53)
• D
  4% (2)

Explanation

Option C is correct because PKI is fundamentally a framework of trust - it defines the policies, procedures, roles (like Certificate Authorities and Registration Authorities), and organizational structure that establishes who or which entity is authorized to issue, validate, and revoke digital certificates. The "infrastructure" in PKI refers to this human and procedural architecture, not just the technology.

Why the distractors are wrong:

• A is a partial truth - PKI enables digital signatures, but the claim of irrefutability is overstated (certificates can be revoked or forged through CA compromise), and this describes one use of PKI rather than what PKI itself provides.
• B is marketing, not security - displaying a certificate or having a PKI does not guarantee a business is actually secure; it only signals that identity was verified at a point in time.
• D is completely unrelated - backup policies fall under business continuity/disaster recovery, not PKI.

Memory tip: Think of PKI as the "government ID system" of the internet - just as governments define who can issue passports and under what rules, a PKI defines who has authority to vouch for digital identities and how. It's the organizational and procedural backbone, not just the technology.

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