Which aspect of the CIA Triad requires that data are correct?

Integrity is the component of the CIA Triad that ensures data is accurate, trustworthy, and has not been altered in an unauthorized manner. This principle guarantees the correctness and completeness of data throughout its entire lifecycle. It involves protecting data from both intentional (malicious) and unintentional (accidental) modification. Measures like hashing, digital signatures, and access controls are used to maintain data integrity, ensuring that what is stored or transmitted is the same as what was originally intended.

A. Stability: This is not a component of the CIA Triad. It refers to the reliability and consistency of a system's performance over time.

C. Confidentiality: This principle focuses on preventing the unauthorized disclosure of information, ensuring that data is accessible only to authorized individuals. It is about secrecy, not correctness.

D. Availability: This principle ensures that information and systems are accessible and usable upon demand by an authorized user. It concerns uptime and access, not the accuracy of the data.

1. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). (2017). An Introduction to Information Security (NIST Special Publication 800-12 Rev. 1). U.S. Department of Commerce. In Section 2.2

"The 'Big Three' Security Concepts

" integrity is defined as guarding against improper information modification or destruction

which includes ensuring information non-repudiation and authenticity. This directly relates to the correctness of data. (Page 5).

2. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Computer Security Resource Center (CSRC) Glossary. Retrieved from https://csrc.nist.gov/glossary. The glossary defines Integrity as "The property that data or information have not been altered or destroyed in an unauthorized manner." This definition is central to the concept of data correctness.

3. Cornell University. Information Technology at Cornell. "The CIA Triad: Confidentiality

Integrity

and Availability." This university resource states

"Integrity is the 'I' in the CIA triad. It is the assurance that the information is trustworthy and accurate." This explicitly links integrity with the correctness and accuracy of data.