Criminals often use codes and ciphers to protect the security of their messages and transactions. This is known as?

• A. Cryptography
• B. Cryptanalysis
• C. Steganography
• D. Forensics

Answer: (A)

Protecting information with codes and ciphers falls under cryptography. This field is about creating and using methods to transform readable information into unreadable ciphertext (and back again with a key) so messages and transactions stay confidential. It covers a range of techniques from simple substitutions to advanced public-key systems used today. Cryptanalysis, by contrast, is the study of breaking those codes. Steganography hides the existence of a message within another medium, rather than making its content unreadable. Forensics deals with analyzing evidence in investigations, not encoding communications. So cryptography is the best term for protecting messages with codes and ciphers.