PCNSA Securing Traffic Practice Question
A company is experiencing performance issues due to large amounts of encrypted traffic. They want to offload decryption to a dedicated appliance but still maintain visibility. Which feature should they configure on the Palo Alto Networks firewall?
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
✓
SSL Decryption with a dedicated decryption broker.
The decryption broker feature allows offloading decryption to a dedicated appliance while maintaining visibility for the firewall. Option B, SSL Forward Proxy with decryption mirroring, mirrors decrypted traffic but does not offload decryption. Option C, decryption port mirroring, is not a standard feature for offloading. Option D, TLS 1.3 decryption, refers to supporting a protocol version, not a decryption offloading solution.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
SSL Decryption with a dedicated decryption broker.
Why this is correct
A decryption broker offloads SSL/TLS decryption to a dedicated appliance, reducing firewall load while maintaining visibility.
- ✗
SSL Forward Proxy with decryption mirroring.
Why it's wrong here
Decryption mirroring copies traffic for analysis but does not offload decryption processing.
- ✗
Decryption port mirroring.
Why it's wrong here
Port mirroring copies traffic but does not offload decryption processing.
- ✗
TLS 1.3 decryption.
Why it's wrong here
TLS 1.3 is a protocol; enabling it does not offload decryption to another appliance.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This PCNSA practice question is part of Courseiva's free Palo Alto Networks 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 PCNSA exam.