Which threat vector is greatly affected by the handling of autorun.inf files in Windows?

The correct choice relates to how autorun.inf files function with removable devices, such as USB drives or external hard drives. Autorun.inf is a configuration file on removable storage media that can automatically execute specified files when the media is connected to a Windows system. This can be particularly dangerous, as malicious software can be embedded in the autorun.inf file, leading to the automatic execution of harmful programs when the removable device is plugged in.

Because these files can initiate actions without explicit user consent, handling them improperly can lead to the widespread propagation of malware through removable devices. This makes it critical to manage autorun settings and configurations to prevent security breaches caused by potentially malicious removable media.

In contrast, other threat vectors like network devices, web applications, and database servers are less influenced by autorun.inf files since they do not use this specific file type for executing code or programs. Consequently, the handling of autorun.inf files has the most significant impact on the security of removable devices.