Which statement best describes lossless compression?

Which statement best describes lossless compression?

• A. It can be decompressed later with no loss of data
• B. It permanently discards data
• C. It cannot be decompressed
• D. It does not require an algorithm

Answer: (A)

Lossless compression reduces the size of data but preserves every bit of information so the original can be restored exactly when you decompress. That exact reversibility is what makes it suitable for text, program files, or any data where even a tiny change would matter. So the statement that best describes it is that it can be decompressed later with no loss of data. This isn’t about discarding information or making the data irretrievable. So it’s not about permanently discarding data, nor about being unable to decompress. And compression always relies on some encoding/decoding process, so saying it doesn’t require an algorithm isn’t accurate—the method uses a specific algorithm to compress and then to decompress.

Lossless compression reduces the size of data but preserves every bit of information so the original can be restored exactly when you decompress. That exact reversibility is what makes it suitable for text, program files, or any data where even a tiny change would matter. So the statement that best describes it is that it can be decompressed later with no loss of data.

This isn’t about discarding information or making the data irretrievable. So it’s not about permanently discarding data, nor about being unable to decompress. And compression always relies on some encoding/decoding process, so saying it doesn’t require an algorithm isn’t accurate—the method uses a specific algorithm to compress and then to decompress.