Which objective is concerned with preventing unauthorized data modification?

Which objective is concerned with preventing unauthorized data modification?

• A. Availability
• B. Integrity of data
• C. Confidentiality
• D. Integrity of processing

Answer: (B)

Data integrity is about keeping information accurate, complete, and trustworthy and protecting it from unauthorized changes. When the objective is to prevent someone from modifying data without permission, this is the core focus of data integrity. It relies on controls like access controls, change management, audit trails, and data verification methods (such as hashes or digital signatures) to ensure that any modification is authorized and detectable. Other objectives address different concerns: availability ensures data and systems are accessible when needed; confidentiality protects information from being disclosed to unauthorized parties; integrity of processing concentrates on ensuring the processing itself is correct and tamper-free. While related, they do not directly target preventing unauthorized modifications to the data content itself.

Data integrity is about keeping information accurate, complete, and trustworthy and protecting it from unauthorized changes. When the objective is to prevent someone from modifying data without permission, this is the core focus of data integrity. It relies on controls like access controls, change management, audit trails, and data verification methods (such as hashes or digital signatures) to ensure that any modification is authorized and detectable.

Other objectives address different concerns: availability ensures data and systems are accessible when needed; confidentiality protects information from being disclosed to unauthorized parties; integrity of processing concentrates on ensuring the processing itself is correct and tamper-free. While related, they do not directly target preventing unauthorized modifications to the data content itself.