Which statement about Netcat is true?

• A. Netcat is primarily a graphical tool for Windows.
• B. Netcat can act as a simple TCP/UDP read/write tool and relay data.
• C. Netcat encrypts traffic by default.
• D. Netcat requires Metasploit to operate.

Answer: (C)

Netcat is a lightweight, command-line networking tool whose primary purpose is to read from and write to network connections. It can open a connection to a remote host and port or listen on a local port, and then it simply passes data between the local stdin/stdout and the network socket. Because of that, it can also relay data between two streams, effectively serving as a simple TCP/UDP read/write tool and a data relay.

Traffic is not encrypted by default. Netcat sends data in clear text unless you wrap it with an encryption layer (for example, using TLS/SSL with a wrapper or using a variant that provides encryption). It is not a graphical Windows tool—the standard usage is command-line, though GUI wrappers exist. It also does not require Metasploit to operate; it runs standalone and can be used independently of Metasploit, though it can be used in conjunction with it.