PCNSA Securing Traffic Practice Question
A company is implementing SSL Decryption with a forward proxy for outbound traffic. They want to ensure that traffic to sensitive sites like banking is not decrypted. What is the correct configuration?
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
✓
Create a decryption exclusion rule for specific URLs or categories.
Decryption exclusion rules allow you to specify URLs or URL categories (e.g., banking sites) that should not be decrypted, ensuring sensitive traffic remains encrypted. Option A is incorrect because browser security settings cannot prevent the firewall from decrypting traffic; decryption is controlled at the firewall level. Option B is impractical because disabling SSL Decryption globally would affect all traffic, not just sensitive sites. Option C is incorrect because HTTP traffic is already plaintext and does not need decryption; SSL Decryption is specifically for HTTPS traffic.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
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Rely on the browser's security settings to prevent decryption.
Why it's wrong here
Browser security settings control the client's own TLS behaviour and cannot instruct the forward proxy to exempt destinations from decryption. It is tempting because browser warnings and certificate settings appear security-relevant, and would be correct only if the proxy were not performing decryption at all.
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Disable SSL Decryption globally when the user visits sensitive sites.
Why it's wrong here
Disabling SSL Decryption globally removes inspection for all outbound traffic, not just sensitive sites, defeating the deployment's purpose. It is tempting because it guarantees banking traffic stays encrypted, and would be correct only if the requirement were to stop decryption entirely rather than exempt specific destinations via a decryption policy.
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Use a policy to decrypt only HTTP traffic.
Why it's wrong here
Decrypting only HTTP traffic leaves all HTTPS traffic uninspected, so sensitive sites are never decrypted but neither is anything else, failing the requirement to decrypt general outbound traffic. It is tempting because it appears to limit decryption scope, and would be correct if the policy genuinely needed to target only cleartext HTTP.
- ✓
Create a decryption exclusion rule for specific URLs or categories.
Why this is correct
A decryption exclusion rule matches specific URLs or URL categories and bypasses decryption for them, honouring privacy and legal constraints for banking traffic. Forward proxy decryption policies evaluate exclusions before decryption profiles, so sensitive sessions stay encrypted.
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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.