Data Integrity

In computer science and telecommunications, the term data integrity has the following meanings:

1. The condition in which data is identically maintained during any operation, such as transfer, storage, and retrieval.
2. The preservation of data for their intended use.
3. Relative to specified operations, the a priori expectation of data quality.

Another aspect of data integrity is the assurance that data can only be accessed and altered by those authorized to do so.

Often such integrity is ensured by use of a number referred to as a Message Integrity Code or Message Authentication Code. These are abbreviated MIC and MAC respectively.

In cryptography and information security in general, integrity refers to the validity of data. Integrity can be compromised in two main ways:

• Malicious altering:
  • An attacker alters the account number in a bank transaction
  • Forging an identity document
• Accidental altering:
  • Transmission errors
  • Harddisk crash

Specifically, data integrity in a relational database is concerned with three aspects of the data in a database:

1. Accuracy
2. Correctness
3. Validity

A common variety of data integrity errors is Primary Key / Foreign Key relationship problems, such as orphan child record missing parent.