Which protocol is primarily responsible for error handling and data integrity in Internet communications?

The correct answer emphasizes the role of the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) in ensuring reliable communication over the Internet. TCP is designed with a focus on error detection and correction, as well as maintaining the integrity of the data being transmitted. It achieves this through several mechanisms, such as error-checking procedures, acknowledgment messages to confirm successful data receipt, and the retransmission of lost packets. These features enable TCP to create a reliable communication channel that is essential for applications where accurate data transfer is critical, like web browsing and email.

In contrast, the other protocols listed serve different primary functions. HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) is primarily used for transmitting web pages and doesn’t inherently handle error correction. FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is utilized for transferring files but relies on TCP for reliable delivery, meaning it doesn’t manage error handling on its own. IP (Internet Protocol) primarily deals with routing and addressing packets of data but does not offer mechanisms for error correction or data integrity, making TCP the definitive protocol for those purposes in Internet communications.