1Encryption

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We rely on software to protect our data every day, but most of us know little about how this protection works. Why does a “lock” icon in the corner of your browser mean it’s safe to enter your credit card number? How does creating a password for your phone actually protect the data inside? What really prevents other people from logging into your online accounts?

Computer security is the science of protecting data. In a way, computer security represents technology solving a problem that technology created. Not that long ago, most data wasn’t stored digitally. We had filing cabinets in our offices and shoeboxes of photographs under our ...

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