220-1102 Question 568
Single answerPrivate-browsing modeA technician is configuring a shared Windows workstation at a hotel business center. Guests have reported that after someone uses the browser, the next user can sometimes see previously visited sites in the address bar and remain signed in to webmail. The hotel does not want to deploy additional software, and staff still need normal browser functionality during maintenance sessions. Which action is the BEST way to reduce the chance of guest browsing data being left behind between sessions?
- A
Instruct guests to use the browser's private-browsing mode for their sessions
- B
Disable cookies entirely in the browser settings
- C
Clear the browser cache once at the end of each week
- D
Enable the pop-up blocker and phishing protection features
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A
Explanation
On a shared or public computer, private-browsing mode is the most appropriate built-in control for reducing the amount of local browsing data retained after a session ends. Major browsers document that private/incognito/in-private sessions typically do not retain browsing history, search history, cookies, and form data after the private window is closed, though downloads and bookmarks created during the session may still remain unless manually removed. This makes private-browsing mode a practical CompTIA A+ Core 2 answer when the goal is to reduce local traces on a shared workstation. However, best practice is to understand its limits: private-browsing mode does not hide user activity from websites, employers, schools, ISPs, or network monitoring tools, and it is not a substitute for endpoint management or kiosk-style controls.
- A. Correct.
Correct. Private-browsing mode is specifically designed to limit local storage of browsing history, form data, search entries, and session information after the private session is closed. While it does not make the user anonymous to websites, the ISP, or the network, it is the best built-in browser feature in this scenario for reducing residual local data on a shared workstation without installing additional tools.
- B. Incorrect.
Incorrect. Disabling cookies may reduce some persistent sign-in behavior, but it does not address all locally stored browsing artifacts such as history entries, cached pages, or form/autocomplete data in the same comprehensive way that private-browsing mode does. It can also break normal website functionality, which conflicts with the requirement to preserve normal browser use for staff maintenance sessions.
- C. Incorrect.
Incorrect. Clearing the cache weekly is far too infrequent for a shared public workstation. Multiple guests could be exposed to the previous user's data before the scheduled cleanup occurs. Also, cache clearing alone does not necessarily remove all history, autofill entries, or active sign-in sessions.
- D. Incorrect.
Incorrect. Pop-up blocking and phishing protection are useful security features, but they do not primarily prevent one guest's browsing history or session remnants from being available to the next user. Someone might choose this option because it sounds security-related, but it does not solve the privacy problem described.