Which statement is true about WPA2-Personal?

Which statement is true about WPA2-Personal?

• A. It uses a pre-shared key (PSK) for authentication
• B. It uses a central server with EAP
• C. It uses 3DES encryption
• D. It uses no encryption

Answer: (A)

WPA2-Personal relies on a pre-shared key to authenticate devices to the wireless network. In this mode there isn’t a centralized authentication server; all clients use the same password to join. During connection, the pre-shared key is combined with random values in a four-way handshake to derive the per-session encryption keys, and those keys are used with AES-CCMP to protect traffic. This is why the statement about a pre-shared key is the correct description for WPA2-Personal. Other options describe different architectures or outdated encryption practices: using a central server with EAP is characteristic of WPA2-Enterprise, not WPA2-Personal; WPA2 uses AES (not 3DES) for encryption; and WPA2-Personal does provide encryption, so saying there is no encryption isn’t accurate. Keep in mind, a strong, unique passphrase is essential for security in PSK-based networks.

WPA2-Personal relies on a pre-shared key to authenticate devices to the wireless network. In this mode there isn’t a centralized authentication server; all clients use the same password to join. During connection, the pre-shared key is combined with random values in a four-way handshake to derive the per-session encryption keys, and those keys are used with AES-CCMP to protect traffic.

This is why the statement about a pre-shared key is the correct description for WPA2-Personal. Other options describe different architectures or outdated encryption practices: using a central server with EAP is characteristic of WPA2-Enterprise, not WPA2-Personal; WPA2 uses AES (not 3DES) for encryption; and WPA2-Personal does provide encryption, so saying there is no encryption isn’t accurate. Keep in mind, a strong, unique passphrase is essential for security in PSK-based networks.