A security architect is setting up various security mechanisms for a retail company that handles a considerable amount of credit card processing. What industry-standard data masking technique should the security architect recommend?

Tokenization is the recommended industry-standard data masking technique for handling sensitive information such as credit card data. It works by replacing sensitive data elements with non-sensitive equivalents, known as tokens, which can be used in place of the original data without exposing it. This approach provides an extra layer of security, making it easier to comply with regulations, such as the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), which is crucial for any business involved in processing credit cards.

The effectiveness of tokenization lies in its ability to reduce the risks associated with storing sensitive information. Since the tokens do not contain recognizable or usable credit card information, even if a data breach were to occur, the compromised tokens would offer little value to attackers. Additionally, tokenization allows for maintaining the original data in a secure environment accessible only to authorized systems or personnel, facilitating necessary processes without jeopardizing sensitive data.

Other techniques such as scrubbing, anonymization, and integrity management serve different purposes and may not meet the specific needs of processing credit card information effectively. While scrubbing may remove or alter sensitive data, it does not replace it with a secure token. Anonymization permanently removes identifiable information, thus losing its usability in many cases. Integrity management focuses on ensuring data accuracy and consistency rather