Scrambling of data before transmission across a network to avoid manipulation…

CONCEPT

In information security, encryption transforms readable plaintext into unreadable ciphertext using an algorithm and a key. It protects data in transit because an interceptor cannot understand or safely use the scrambled form without the relevant key.

APPLICATION

The stem describes data being scrambled before it travels across a network so that a third party cannot misuse or tamper with it. That description matches encryption: the readable data is converted into ciphertext before or while it is transmitted.

CONTRAST

• Protection is a broad security goal, not the named transformation applied to the data.

• Permutation means rearranging order; by itself it does not provide the security mechanism described in the stem.

• Detection identifies an event or problem after observation; it does not describe changing the data before sending it.

Result: the best-supported term among the offered choices is Encryption.