Which statement about WPA2-Enterprise authentication is correct?

Which statement about WPA2-Enterprise authentication is correct?

• A. It uses a pre-shared key (PSK) for all devices
• B. It uses a centralized authentication server (EAP/RADIUS) and unique credentials per user
• C. It uses no encryption
• D. It uses only hardware tokens

Answer: (B)

WPA2-Enterprise authentication uses a centralized authentication framework, typically 802.1X with EAP and a RADIUS server. Instead of all devices sharing a single key, each user has unique credentials, and the access point forwards authentication requests to the central server for verification. The server checks the user’s identity (often via username/password or certificates) and only then grants network access. This per-user approach scales for larger deployments and allows centralized control, revocation, and accounting. Once authentication succeeds, data on the network is protected by strong WPA2 encryption (AES-CCMP). A key difference from personal mode is that personal mode relies on a shared pre-shared key, which is why that option doesn’t fit Enterprise. The statement that there’s no encryption is incorrect, since WPA2 provides encryption regardless of the authentication method. Hardware tokens are not mandatory for WPA2-Enterprise; they may be used in some setups but aren’t a requirement.

WPA2-Enterprise authentication uses a centralized authentication framework, typically 802.1X with EAP and a RADIUS server. Instead of all devices sharing a single key, each user has unique credentials, and the access point forwards authentication requests to the central server for verification. The server checks the user’s identity (often via username/password or certificates) and only then grants network access. This per-user approach scales for larger deployments and allows centralized control, revocation, and accounting. Once authentication succeeds, data on the network is protected by strong WPA2 encryption (AES-CCMP).

A key difference from personal mode is that personal mode relies on a shared pre-shared key, which is why that option doesn’t fit Enterprise. The statement that there’s no encryption is incorrect, since WPA2 provides encryption regardless of the authentication method. Hardware tokens are not mandatory for WPA2-Enterprise; they may be used in some setups but aren’t a requirement.