Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP) Practice Exam 2025 - Free CCSP Practice Questions and Study Guide

The correct answer, which is encryption, refers to the process of converting plaintext into ciphertext using a method that can typically be reversed, allowing the original data to be retrieved when necessary. This transformation is vital in securing data, ensuring that unauthorized parties cannot easily access or understand the information.

Encryption employs algorithms and keys to perform this transformation, which can be symmetrical, using the same key for both encryption and decryption, or asymmetrical, using a pair of keys. The bidirectional nature of encryption means that there is a clear and defined method for converting back to the original data, making it an essential practice in data protection strategies, especially in cloud environments.

In contrast, degaussing refers to the process of removing magnetic fields to erase data stored on magnetic media, which does not involve plaintext or ciphertext conversion. Key management pertains to the administration of cryptographic keys, which is an overall aspect of secure encryption practices but does not directly describe the conversion process itself. Homomorphic encryption enables computations on ciphertext, allowing for operations without decryption, but it is a more advanced form of encryption and does not represent the general technique used in standard encryption processes. Thus, encryption stands out as the most accurate term in the context of converting plaintext to ciphertext.