What is the benefit of encryption?

• A. Intercepted or stolen data is still secure and only the intended readers can understand it.
• B. It speeds up processing.
• C. It makes data larger.
• D. It eliminates need for passwords.

Answer: (A)

Encryption protects data by turning it into unreadable ciphertext unless you have the correct decryption key. This means that if data is intercepted or stolen, outsiders can’t read it, so only the intended readers who hold the key can understand it. That confidentiality is the core benefit. It’s not primarily about speed—encryption adds some computational work and can slow processing a bit. It doesn’t inherently make data larger, aside from minor overhead in some schemes. It also doesn’t remove the need for passwords, since passwords are authentication tools or used to derive keys, not a substitute for proper encryption keys.