Which statement best describes a router?

Which statement best describes a router?

• A. Hardware or software that connects two or more networks; functions as sorter and interpreter by looking at addresses and passing bits of information to proper destinations. Software routers are sometimes referred to as gateways.
• B. A device that stores encryption keys.
• C. A system that performs vulnerability scanning.
• D. A protocol for secure file transfer.

Answer: (A)

Routers connect different networks and decide how to move data between them by looking at destination addresses and choosing the next hop toward that destination. They can be hardware devices or software that performs routing, and when software handles routing it’s often called a gateway. This describes the essential role of routing: directing packets to the correct network path based on address information, which is central to how networks are segmented and how traffic flows in PCI DSS environments. The other statements don’t describe routing. Storing encryption keys is a crypto or key management function, not routing. Performing vulnerability scanning is a security assessment activity, not routing. A protocol for secure file transfer refers to a specific transfer protocol, not the mechanism that moves packets between networks.

Routers connect different networks and decide how to move data between them by looking at destination addresses and choosing the next hop toward that destination. They can be hardware devices or software that performs routing, and when software handles routing it’s often called a gateway. This describes the essential role of routing: directing packets to the correct network path based on address information, which is central to how networks are segmented and how traffic flows in PCI DSS environments.

The other statements don’t describe routing. Storing encryption keys is a crypto or key management function, not routing. Performing vulnerability scanning is a security assessment activity, not routing. A protocol for secure file transfer refers to a specific transfer protocol, not the mechanism that moves packets between networks.