Which technology protects the integrity of data in transit?

Which technology protects the integrity of data in transit?

• A. Encrypting data with strong ciphers
• B. Digitally signing the data
• C. Reducing data size through compression
• D. Hashing

Answer: (D)

Protecting integrity in transit means being able to detect if the data was altered while moving from sender to receiver. A cryptographic hash function creates a small, fixed-size digest from the data. If any part of the data changes, the hash changes drastically. The sender can share the data along with its hash, and the receiver recomputes the hash and compares it to the original. A mismatch signals tampering, so the data’s integrity is verified. Encryption mainly shields confidentiality, not integrity on its own. Digital signatures do ensure integrity plus authenticity, but they require key management and introduce additional overhead. Compression affects size, not whether the content was tampered with. Hashing provides a straightforward, effective way to detect alterations during transit.

Protecting integrity in transit means being able to detect if the data was altered while moving from sender to receiver. A cryptographic hash function creates a small, fixed-size digest from the data. If any part of the data changes, the hash changes drastically. The sender can share the data along with its hash, and the receiver recomputes the hash and compares it to the original. A mismatch signals tampering, so the data’s integrity is verified.

Encryption mainly shields confidentiality, not integrity on its own. Digital signatures do ensure integrity plus authenticity, but they require key management and introduce additional overhead. Compression affects size, not whether the content was tampered with. Hashing provides a straightforward, effective way to detect alterations during transit.