Confidentiality vs Integrity

Why they differ

Confidentiality is about who can see information; integrity is about whether it has been changed.

Fundamentals

Making sure only the right people can see a piece of information.

Formal

The property that information is not made available or disclosed to people, systems or processes that are not allowed to have it - whether it is stored, being sent or being printed.

In plain English

Like a sealed letter - the address is on the outside, but only the person it is meant for should read what is inside.

In practice

In a municipality's HR system, salary details can be seen only by the payroll team and each employee's own manager, not by colleagues in other departments.

Why it matters

Once secret information has leaked it cannot be taken back, and a leak of personal data must be reported to the authorities and can bring fines and lasting damage to trust.

Integrity

Fundamentals

Making sure information stays correct and complete, and is not changed by accident or without permission.

Formal

The property that information is accurate and complete, and that any change to it is made only by those allowed to, in a way that can be noticed. Hashing and digital signatures are common ways to show that nothing has been altered.

In plain English

Like a recipe card - if someone quietly changes “one teaspoon of salt” to “one cup”, everyone who follows it ruins the dish without knowing why.

In practice

An attacker inside a supplier's mailbox changes the account number on an invoice sent to a municipality, and a finance clerk pays a large sum to the wrong account.

Why it matters

Decisions, payments and even medical treatment rely on data being right; wrong data can do more harm than missing data because nobody questions it.

Shared connections

TLS CIA triad