Fortify Your Cyber Fortress: Conquer the 2026 NDE Practice Exam! 🚀🔐

The correct choice focuses on network security devices, which are essential for protecting systems like Bob's laptop from external threats while connected to a network. Network security devices include firewalls, intrusion detection systems, and intrusion prevention systems that actively monitor traffic, detect threats, and block malicious activity. By enabling these devices, Bob can effectively safeguard his laptop from various network-based attacks, unauthorized access, and vulnerabilities that could be exploited by attackers.

Though antivirus software is critical for identifying and neutralizing malware on a device, it primarily focuses on threats that have already breached the system, rather than preemptively controlling access from the network. Encryption tools are vital for securing data in transit and ensuring confidentiality, but they do not directly prevent network attacks. Access control lists are a way to specify permissions for users or systems but do not represent hardware or software devoted to actively monitoring and defending against network threats. Therefore, enabling network security devices is the best answer for robust protection against such attacks.