PCNSE Deploy and Configure Firewalls Practice Question
By default, what is the action on traffic between two different zones without any security rule?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse the default inter-zone action with intra-zone traffic (which is allowed by default) or assume that the firewall will prompt or log a warning, when in fact it silently denies without any user notification.
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
✓
deny
By default, Palo Alto Networks firewalls implement an implicit deny rule for inter-zone traffic. This means that if no security rule explicitly matches traffic between two different zones, the firewall drops the packet and logs it as a deny action. This default behavior ensures that all cross-zone traffic must be explicitly allowed by a security policy, enforcing a zero-trust model.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
deny
Why this is correct
By default, traffic between different zones is denied unless a security rule allows it.
- ✗
allow
Why it's wrong here
Intrazone traffic is allowed by default, but interzone traffic is denied.
- ✗
depends on the application
Why it's wrong here
Default action is deny regardless of application.
- ✗
prompt
Why it's wrong here
No prompt behavior exists for default interzone traffic.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This PCNSE 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 PCNSE exam.