Events & Promotions
|
|
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.
Customized
for You
Track
Your Progress
Practice
Pays
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Apr 2512:30 AM EDT
-01:30 AM EDT
At one point, she believed GMAT wasn’t for her. After scoring 595, self-doubt crept in and she questioned her potential. But instead of quitting, she made the right strategic changes. The result? A remarkable comeback to 695. Check out how Saakshi did it.
Apr 2601:30 AM EDT
-02:30 AM EDT
Learn how Keshav, a Chartered Accountant, scored an impressive 705 on GMAT in just 30 days with GMATWhiz's expert guidance. In this video, he shares preparation tips and strategies that worked for him, including the mock, time management, and more.
Apr 2610:00 AM EDT
-11:00 AM EDT
The Target Test Prep course represents a quantum leap forward in GMAT preparation, a radical reinterpretation of the way that students should study. Try before you buy with a 5-day, full-access trial of the course for FREE!
Apr 2711:00 AM EDT
-12:00 PM EDT
Prefer video-based learning? The Target Test Prep OnDemand course is a one-of-a-kind video masterclass featuring 400 hours of lecture-style teaching by Scott Woodbury-Stewart, founder of Target Test Prep and one of the most accomplished GMAT instructors
Apr 2808:00 AM PDT
-11:00 AM PDT
Whether you are just beginning your MBA journey or fine-tuning your path to a 700+ score, GMAT Day is designed to give you a competitive edge.
May 0111:00 AM PDT
-12:00 PM PDT
Free- full-length test + 15 concept videos + 150+ short videos + study plan!
12 Aug 2024, 01:30
Kudos
Bookmarks
C
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
95%
(hard)
Question Stats:
48% (02:37) correct
52%
(02:46)
wrong
based on 165
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
Years ago, some in the government's intelligence community feared the work of telecommunications researchers at then-emerging private security firms. The government experts concluded that these private firms posed the biggest risk to successful government espionage. As the private security firms began publicly releasing and advertising encryption algorithms and other security products, these government experts saw support for their conclusion when an encryption algorithm that government experts could not break began appearing in countless emails.
Which of the following, if true, most weakens the conclusion of the government experts referred to above?
(A) Shortly before the government experts reached their conclusions, two private security companies each claimed to have developed "the world's strongest email encryption algorithm"
(B) The private security firms' decision to advertise their products and sell them publicly led to other members of the private sector and academia scrutinizing the encryption algorithms.
(C) An open-source encryption algorithm, developed by an academic and freely available from popular websites, is recognized by numerous ex-government code breakers as the most unbreakable algorithm ever developed.
(D) An enemy government recently succeeded in placing a spy within the government espionage operations referred to above.
(E) To strengthen the reputation of the private security firms, employees of these firms publish information about the strength of their products and the benefits of using them.
Which of the following, if true, most weakens the conclusion of the government experts referred to above?
(A) Shortly before the government experts reached their conclusions, two private security companies each claimed to have developed "the world's strongest email encryption algorithm"
(B) The private security firms' decision to advertise their products and sell them publicly led to other members of the private sector and academia scrutinizing the encryption algorithms.
(C) An open-source encryption algorithm, developed by an academic and freely available from popular websites, is recognized by numerous ex-government code breakers as the most unbreakable algorithm ever developed.
(D) An enemy government recently succeeded in placing a spy within the government espionage operations referred to above.
(E) To strengthen the reputation of the private security firms, employees of these firms publish information about the strength of their products and the benefits of using them.
12 Aug 2024, 04:14
Kudos
Bookmarks
To solve this question, let us deploy IMS's four-step technique.
STEP #1 -> IDENTIFY THE QUESTION TYPE
Let us read the question stem to identify the question type.
STEP #2 -> X-RAY THE ARGUMENT
In a weakening question, it is a must to x-ray the argument and deconstruct it. Since we are to weaken the conclusion of the government experts, let us note the experts' conclusion along with the premise(s) once the argument is read.
PREMISE: An encryption algorithm that government experts could not break began appearing in countless emails as the private security firms began publicly releasing and advertising encryption algorithms and other security products.
STEP #3 -> FRAME A SHADOW ANSWER
To frame a shadow answer, we need to know what the correct answer should do. In this question, the correct answer must cast doubt on the experts' conclusion.
SHADOW ANSWER: Any situation that, after having taken the premise into consideration, leads us to believe that the private security firms did not pose the biggest risk to successful government espionage.
STEP #4 -> ELIMINATE INCORRECT OPTIONS
(A) Shortly before the government experts reached their conclusions, two private security companies each claimed to have developed "the world's strongest email encryption algorithm". | NOT A MATCH | What two private security companies claimed before (or after) the government experts reached their conclusions is irrelevant to understanding whether or not the private security firms posed the biggest risk to successful government espionage. If the claim of these companies was true, it might actually strengthen the argument; this option, however, does not indicate if the claim was true or false. | ELIMINATE
(B) The private security firms' decision to advertise their products and sell them publicly led to other members of the private sector and academia scrutinizing the encryption algorithms. | NOT A MATCH | What the private security firms' decision to advertise their products and sell them publicly caused other members of the private sector and academia to do does not tell us if the private security firms did not pose the biggest risk to successful government espionage. | ELIMINATE
(C) An open-source encryption algorithm, developed by an academic and freely available from popular websites, is recognized by numerous ex-government code breakers as the most unbreakable algorithm ever developed. | MATCHES THE SHADOW ANSWER | If an open-source encryption algorithm that was developed by an academic and freely available from popular websites is actually recognized by numerous ex-government code breakers as the most unbreakable algorithm ever developed, it leads us to believe that the private security firms did not actually pose the biggest risk to successful government espionage. Notice that the premise says the private security firms began publicly releasing and advertising encryption algorithms and other security products; this option, nonetheless, says that there is an open-source encryption algorithm actually developed by an academic and freely available from popular websites. This leads us to believe that the websites also posed a threat akin to the threat posed by the security firms. The premise is challenged, and the argument is weakened. Also, remember that we are looking for an answer option that leads us to believe that the private security firms did not pose the biggest risk to successful government espionage after having taken the premise into consideration.| KEEP
(D) An enemy government recently succeeded in placing a spy within the government espionage operations referred to above. | NOT A MATCH | If an enemy government recently succeeded in placing a spy within the government espionage operations mentioned, would that mean the private security firms did not pose the biggest risk to successful government espionage? Of course not! Notice that this option speaks of a recent action; also, it does not tell us how much of a threat is posed by the placed spy. | ELIMINATE
(E) To strengthen the reputation of the private security firms, employees of these firms publish information about the strength of their products and the benefits of using them. | NOT A MATCH | What the employees of the private security firms do to strengthen the firms' reputation does not give us any reason to believe that the firms did not or do not pose the biggest risk to successful government espionage. | ELIMINATE
Therefore, (C) has to be the correct answer.
STEP #1 -> IDENTIFY THE QUESTION TYPE
Let us read the question stem to identify the question type.
Quote:
The stem indicates a weakening question.
STEP #2 -> X-RAY THE ARGUMENT
In a weakening question, it is a must to x-ray the argument and deconstruct it. Since we are to weaken the conclusion of the government experts, let us note the experts' conclusion along with the premise(s) once the argument is read.
Quote:
CONCLUSION: The private security firms posed the biggest risk to successful government espionage.
PREMISE: An encryption algorithm that government experts could not break began appearing in countless emails as the private security firms began publicly releasing and advertising encryption algorithms and other security products.
STEP #3 -> FRAME A SHADOW ANSWER
To frame a shadow answer, we need to know what the correct answer should do. In this question, the correct answer must cast doubt on the experts' conclusion.
SHADOW ANSWER: Any situation that, after having taken the premise into consideration, leads us to believe that the private security firms did not pose the biggest risk to successful government espionage.
STEP #4 -> ELIMINATE INCORRECT OPTIONS
(A) Shortly before the government experts reached their conclusions, two private security companies each claimed to have developed "the world's strongest email encryption algorithm". | NOT A MATCH | What two private security companies claimed before (or after) the government experts reached their conclusions is irrelevant to understanding whether or not the private security firms posed the biggest risk to successful government espionage. If the claim of these companies was true, it might actually strengthen the argument; this option, however, does not indicate if the claim was true or false. | ELIMINATE
(B) The private security firms' decision to advertise their products and sell them publicly led to other members of the private sector and academia scrutinizing the encryption algorithms. | NOT A MATCH | What the private security firms' decision to advertise their products and sell them publicly caused other members of the private sector and academia to do does not tell us if the private security firms did not pose the biggest risk to successful government espionage. | ELIMINATE
(C) An open-source encryption algorithm, developed by an academic and freely available from popular websites, is recognized by numerous ex-government code breakers as the most unbreakable algorithm ever developed. | MATCHES THE SHADOW ANSWER | If an open-source encryption algorithm that was developed by an academic and freely available from popular websites is actually recognized by numerous ex-government code breakers as the most unbreakable algorithm ever developed, it leads us to believe that the private security firms did not actually pose the biggest risk to successful government espionage. Notice that the premise says the private security firms began publicly releasing and advertising encryption algorithms and other security products; this option, nonetheless, says that there is an open-source encryption algorithm actually developed by an academic and freely available from popular websites. This leads us to believe that the websites also posed a threat akin to the threat posed by the security firms. The premise is challenged, and the argument is weakened. Also, remember that we are looking for an answer option that leads us to believe that the private security firms did not pose the biggest risk to successful government espionage after having taken the premise into consideration.| KEEP
(D) An enemy government recently succeeded in placing a spy within the government espionage operations referred to above. | NOT A MATCH | If an enemy government recently succeeded in placing a spy within the government espionage operations mentioned, would that mean the private security firms did not pose the biggest risk to successful government espionage? Of course not! Notice that this option speaks of a recent action; also, it does not tell us how much of a threat is posed by the placed spy. | ELIMINATE
(E) To strengthen the reputation of the private security firms, employees of these firms publish information about the strength of their products and the benefits of using them. | NOT A MATCH | What the employees of the private security firms do to strengthen the firms' reputation does not give us any reason to believe that the firms did not or do not pose the biggest risk to successful government espionage. | ELIMINATE
Therefore, (C) has to be the correct answer.
01 Sep 2024, 16:00
Kudos
Bookmarks
Bunuel
OFFICIAL EXPLANATION
The government experts concluded that "private firms posed the biggest risk to successful government espionage" and they supported this conclusion by assuming that the unbreakable encryption algorithm in emails came from the private security firms, which had just begun selling encryption algorithms. In order to weaken the conclusion of the government experts, you need to find evidence supporting the belief that the unbreakable algorithm did not come from the private security firms but from another source (such as free open-source developers).
A. This answer strengthens the conclusion of the government experts by bolstering the claim that the products developed by the private security firms were very difficult to break—and this was the fear of some government experts.
B. This answer does not state that the "other members of the private sector and academia" broke the encryption algorithm and we cannot assume this. If this were true, the algorithm would not be as strong as the government experts suspected and it would almost certainly not be "encryption algorithm that government experts could not break."
C. This answer undermines the government experts' conclusion that the private security firms posed "the biggest risk" as ex-government code breakers admitted that a public-sector open-source freely-available product posed the most difficulty in breaking.
D. This answer is not relevant since a foreign government's ability to infiltrate an espionage operation is not related to the conclusion that the difficulty experienced in breaking email encryption occurred because of products released by private telecommunications companies. Further, this answer provides no basis to conclude or even assume that the private security firms were not the source of the unbreakable algorithm.
E. The publication of information about the strength and benefit of the privately-developed encryption algorithms would not disprove that private security firms were behind the difficult to break email encryption algorithm experienced by the government.
