Which of the following tasks can the command passwd accomplish?

The command passwd is specifically designed to modify user passwords in a Linux or Unix-like operating system. When executed with a username or without any arguments (for the current user), it prompts for the new password and updates the system's records accordingly. This task is crucial for maintaining user account security by allowing users to change their passwords whenever necessary.

In contrast, the other options refer to different functionalities that require different commands. For instance, removing or creating user accounts typically involves commands like userdel for deletion and useradd for creation. Locking a user account can be accomplished using passwd -l or the usermod command with specific options. Each of these tasks requires command-line tools other than passwd, emphasizing that passwd exclusively focuses on updating passwords.