CCNA: Cisco Certified Network Associate — Question 857

How does authentication differ from authorization?

Answer options

• A. Authentication is used to record what resource a user accesses, and authorization is used to determine what resources a user can access.
• B. Authentication verifies the identity of a person accessing a network, and authorization determines what resource a user can access.
• C. Authentication is used to determine what resources a user is allowed to access, and authorization is used to track what equipment is allowed access to the network.
• D. Authentication is used to verify a person's identity, and authorization is used to create syslog messages for logins.

Correct answer: B

Explanation

The correct answer, B, accurately describes authentication as the process of verifying a user's identity and authorization as the mechanism that specifies the resources they can access. Option A misunderstands the roles of authentication and authorization, while option C incorrectly defines their functions. Option D misrepresents authorization by linking it to syslog message creation, which is not its primary purpose.