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FC0-U71 Practice Question: The IT administrator for a small company with 50…
You are the IT administrator for a small company with 50 employees. The company uses a shared network drive for project files. Employees have read/write access to all folders on the drive. Recently, a ransomware attack encrypted many files on the network drive after an employee's workstation became infected. The employee had mapped the drive as a local letter. Backups are available but restoring takes several hours. Management wants to reduce the risk of future ransomware damage to the network drive. You are considering implementing one of the following controls. Which control would be most effective in limiting the spread of ransomware to the network drive?
⚠ Common exam trap
FC0-U71 often tests the confusion between encryption and access controls; candidates may think encryption prevents ransomware, but it does not stop encryption by malware running under a user's context.
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
✓
Implement file-level permissions so users only have write access to folders they need.
Implementing file-level permissions ensures that users only have write access to the folders they need, which limits the scope of encryption if ransomware infects a user's workstation. Since the ransomware typically propagates using the user's credentials, restricting write access prevents it from encrypting files in folders the user cannot modify. This control directly reduces the attack surface on the network drive.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Enable disk encryption on the network drive.
Why it's wrong here
Disk encryption protects data if the physical drive is stolen; it does nothing to stop ransomware writing encrypted files through a legitimate mapped connection. It is tempting as a data-at-rest safeguard, and would be correct for confidentiality of a lost or decommissioned disk rather than limiting ransomware propagation.
- ✓
Implement file-level permissions so users only have write access to folders they need.
Why this is correct
File-level permissions enforce least privilege on the share, so a compromised workstation can only encrypt folders that user can write to. This directly limits ransomware's lateral spread across the drive, unlike backups, which aid recovery but do not prevent encryption.
- ✗
Install antivirus software on all workstations and schedule weekly scans.
Why it's wrong here
Antivirus scans detect known malware signatures but cannot stop an infected workstation's authenticated drive mapping from encrypting files it is permitted to write. It is tempting as baseline endpoint hygiene, and would be correct for catching commodity malware before execution rather than containing an active encryption spread.
- ✗
Require all employees to use a VPN when accessing the network drive.
Why it's wrong here
A VPN encrypts traffic in transit; it does not restrict which mapped-drive folders a user or infected process can write to, so ransomware still encrypts everything the account can reach. VPNs suit securing remote access over untrusted networks, not limiting lateral write scope on a shared drive.
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This FC0-U71 question is part of Courseiva's 988-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
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
This FC0-U71 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the FC0-U71 exam.