What is the purpose of encryption?

The primary purpose of encryption is to hide sensitive information from unauthorized access. Encryption transforms data into a format that is unreadable to anyone who does not possess the correct decryption key. This is crucial for protecting personal, financial, and confidential business information from potential breaches or theft.

By encrypting data, whether it's stored on devices or transmitted over networks, organizations can ensure that even if data is intercepted or accessed by unauthorized users, it remains secure and unintelligible. This plays a significant role in maintaining privacy and compliance with various regulations regarding data protection.

The other options do not reflect the central purpose of encryption. Ensuring data is easily accessible would contradict the aim of encryption, which restricts access to sensitive information. Improving network speeds is unrelated to encryption; in fact, encryption can sometimes add overhead and slightly reduce performance due to the processing required. Similarly, eliminating data redundancy pertains to data management techniques rather than encryption, which is focused on securing data rather than its storage efficiency.