Which of the following can be a sign of a potential security breach?

All of the choices listed can indeed signal potential security breaches, making the selection comprehensive and accurate.

Increased slowdowns in network speed can indicate various issues, including unauthorized traffic or a network being overwhelmed by malicious activity. Such slowdowns can result from an attack or from increased access by unauthorized entities.

Frequent network downtimes are concerning as they can suggest that systems are under attack, possibly from denial-of-service (DoS) attacks, which aim to make services unavailable. Frequent interruptions can also result from misconfigurations or other operational issues, but when seen in tandem with other signs, they become more suspicious.

Unusual outgoing traffic patterns are particularly telling, as they can indicate data exfiltration, which is a common outcome of a breach where sensitive information is being sent away from the network without authorization. Monitoring for this type of activity is a key component of maintaining network security.

When these indicators are considered together—network slowdowns, frequent downtimes, and unusual outgoing traffic—they paint a picture that provides a strong basis for believing that a security breach may be occurring. Therefore, recognizing all of these symptoms collectively as signs of a potential security incident is vital for effective network security management.