What ensures that data has not been altered during transmission?

The concept of integrity is crucial in ensuring that data remains unchanged during its transmission. Integrity checks use methods such as hashing, checksums, or digital signatures to ascertain that the data received is identical to the data sent. If any alterations or corruption occur while the data is in transit, the integrity checks can identify these discrepancies, thereby ensuring that the received message is authentic and complete.

In contexts where communication occurs over networks, maintaining data integrity is essential for protecting information against unintentional modification as well as tampering by unauthorized parties. Integrity ensures that the data has not just reached its destination but that it has remained intact and unaltered throughout its journey.

While other options like encryption, authentication, and authorization play important roles in the security landscape, they serve different purposes: encryption focuses on keeping data confidential, authentication verifies the identity of users or systems, and authorization determines what an authenticated user can access. Integrity specifically addresses the preservation of data in its correct state, making it the most relevant option for ensuring data has not been altered during transmission.