FC0-U71 Tech Concepts and Terminology Practice Question
Which of the following is an example of lossy compression?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap is that candidates may think GIF or PNG are lossy because they compress files, but both are lossless; only JPEG among the options is lossy, and ZIP is a lossless archive format.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
JPEG
JPEG is a lossy compression format that discards some image data to achieve smaller file sizes, making it the correct example. It uses DCT and quantization to reduce detail, especially in high-frequency areas, which is acceptable for photographs but not for text or line art.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
JPEG
Why this is correct
JPEG applies lossy compression, discarding perceptually less significant colour and frequency detail to shrink image files substantially. This irreversible data removal is what makes it lossy, unlike lossless formats such as PNG or GIF that reconstruct the original data exactly.
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GIF
Why it's wrong here
GIF uses LZW, a lossless dictionary compression, so pixel data is reconstructed exactly; only its 256-colour palette limits fidelity. It is tempting because GIFs look degraded, but that stems from palette quantisation at creation, not from lossy compression of the stored image.
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PNG
Why it's wrong here
PNG applies lossless DEFLATE filtering, so every pixel is restored identically on decompression. It is tempting because PNG files are often smaller than uncompressed bitmaps, but that saving comes from redundancy removal, not from the irreversible data discarding that defines lossy compression.
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ZIP
Why it's wrong here
ZIP is lossless: DEFLATE reconstructs the original bytes exactly, so no data is discarded. It is tempting because ZIP shrinks files dramatically, but that reduction comes from redundancy elimination, not from discarding perceptual detail as lossy codecs do.
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Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official CompTIA exam blueprint
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