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Security Fundamentals & Crypto · Foundational

Confidentiality

Security goal ensuring information is disclosed only to authorized people, processes, or systems.

Definition

Confidentiality protects data from unauthorized disclosure at rest, in transit, and in use. It is enforced with encryption, access controls, data classification, and physical protections. Loss of confidentiality is called disclosure.

Example

AES-256 full-disk encryption keeps data on a stolen laptop confidential.

Exam tip

Encryption is the classic confidentiality control; hashing alone does not provide confidentiality.

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