encryption

noun

en·​cryp·​tion in-ˈkrip-shən 

en-

plural encryptions

1

: the act or process of encrypting something : a conversion of something (such as data) into a code or cipher

The regulations … make it harder to provide automatic encryption of information as it passes through the dozens of links in a typical Internet connection …

—Paul Wallich

… a hacker slips into a system, then puts encryption controls in place that locks users out.

—Elizabeth Millard

2

: a code or cipher produced by encrypting something

Artificial intelligence can decode encryptions that previously could not be cracked.

—Ana Swanson

Examples of encryption in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Others upgrade cybersecurity by investing in better encryption and real-time threat monitoring. —Benjamin Laker, Forbes, 21 Mar. 2025

Consider printing it off and storing it in a fireproof lockbox or protecting it using encryption. —PCMAG, 19 Mar. 2025

Meanwhile, the Code Talkers' function was predicated on diversity in the military; languages with more widespread use couldn't have provided effective encryption. —Erin Alberty, Axios, 17 Mar. 2025

Every day, Signal, iMessage, and WhatsApp keep billions of messages, photos, videos, and calls private by using end-to-end encryption by default—while Zoom, Discord, and various other services all have options to enable the protection. —Matt Burgess, WIRED, 14 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1953, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for encryption

• ascription
• conscription
• decryption
• description
• egyptian
• inscription
• prescription
• proscription
• subscription
• transcription
• circumscription
• misdescription