Which term scrambles data so that information becomes unreadable unless someone has an encryption key?

Which term scrambles data so that information becomes unreadable unless someone has an encryption key?

• A. View Materialized
• B. Encryption
• C. Backup
• D. Authentication

Answer: (B)

Encryption is the process of transforming readable data into ciphertext using an algorithm and a key. The point is to protect confidentiality: once data is encrypted, it looks like random data and cannot be understood without the key to decrypt it. This is why encryption makes information unreadable to anyone who doesn’t possess the key, yet can be reversed by the intended recipient who has the key. It’s commonly used to secure data at rest on storage devices and data in transit over networks. Other terms don’t fit this description. A materialized view stores precomputed query results to speed up access, not to scramble data. A backup is a copy of data for recovery after loss, not about preventing access to the data’s contents. Authentication is about verifying who you are, not about converting data into an unreadable form.

Encryption is the process of transforming readable data into ciphertext using an algorithm and a key. The point is to protect confidentiality: once data is encrypted, it looks like random data and cannot be understood without the key to decrypt it. This is why encryption makes information unreadable to anyone who doesn’t possess the key, yet can be reversed by the intended recipient who has the key. It’s commonly used to secure data at rest on storage devices and data in transit over networks.

Other terms don’t fit this description. A materialized view stores precomputed query results to speed up access, not to scramble data. A backup is a copy of data for recovery after loss, not about preventing access to the data’s contents. Authentication is about verifying who you are, not about converting data into an unreadable form.