Which of the following protocols is specifically designed for secure communication over the internet?

TLS, or Transport Layer Security, is specifically designed for secure communication over the internet. It provides a robust framework for encrypting the data transmissions between clients and servers, ensuring confidentiality, integrity, and authentication. This makes it well-suited for applications such as web browsing, email, instant messaging, and more, where secure communication is essential.

The role of TLS is to protect the data being transferred by preventing eavesdropping, tampering, or message forgery. It accomplishes this through a combination of cryptographic techniques that establish a secure channel, starting with a secure handshake that negotiates the cipher algorithms and generates session keys.

Other protocols mentioned do not serve the same function as TLS. For instance, HDLC (High-Level Data Link Control) is primarily a data link layer protocol used for point-to-point and point-to-multipoint connections, not focused on internet security. L2TP (Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol) and PPTP (Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol) are primarily used for establishing virtual private networks (VPNs), but they do not provide encryption in and of themselves without the additional use of IPsec or other protocols. Therefore, TLS stands out as the protocol specifically designed to ensure secure communication over