What is the goal of encryption in data transmission?

The goal of encryption in data transmission is to prevent unauthorized access to the data. Encryption transforms the original data into a format that is unreadable without the appropriate decryption key, thus safeguarding the information from prying eyes. This means that even if intercepted during transit, the data remains secure and cannot be understood by anyone who does not possess the decryption key.

While ensuring data integrity and simplifying data handling processes are important in the overall context of data management and security, they do not encapsulate the primary purpose of encryption itself. Data integrity often entails verifying that the data has not been altered during transmission, which may involve the use of hashing rather than encryption. Similarly, data compression aims to reduce file sizes for quicker transmission but does not secure the data from unauthorized access. Therefore, the fundamental role of encryption is to protect sensitive information by making it accessible only to those who are authorized.