A public-health clinic issues laptops that may hold PHI. Which encryption approach best protects that data if a laptop is stolen while powered off?
Select an answer to reveal the explanation.
Short Explanation
TLS and VPNs are great for data in motion, but a stolen laptop sitting in a parking lot is data at rest. Full-disk encryption is like locking the whole filing cabinet—not just sealing the envelopes you mail—so a powered-off drive does not spill PHI.
Full Explanation
Full-disk encryption protects confidentiality of data at rest on an endpoint by rendering stored content unreadable without the correct unlock credentials or keys. TLS and VPN protect data in transit and do not encrypt a cold local disk. Hashing filenames provides neither reversible confidentiality for file contents nor a substitute for disk encryption when a device is stolen.