A network engineer is designing a secure tunneled VPN. Which of the following protocols would be the MOST secure?
A. IPsec B. SFTP C. BGP D. PPTP
Answer: A
Explanation: Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) came about through a partnership between Cisco and Microsoft with the intention of providing a more secure VPN protocol. L2TP is considered to be a more secure option than PPTP, as the IPSec protocol which holds more secure encryption algorithms, is utilized in conjunction with it. It also requires a pre-shared certificate or key. L2TP’s strongest level of encryption makes use of 168 bit keys, 3 DES encryption algorithm and requires two levels of authentication. L2TP has a number of advantages in comparison to PPTP in terms of providing data integrity and authentication of origin verification designed to keep hackers from compromising the system. However, the increased overhead required to manage this elevated security means that it performs at a slower pace than PPTP.