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The primary goal of integrity within information security frameworks is to maintain the accuracy of information. Integrity focuses on ensuring that data is reliable, trustworthy, and has not been altered or tampered with in an unauthorized manner. This involves safeguarding against unauthorized modifications, ensuring that information stays complete, and allowing only authorized entities to make changes when necessary.

Maintaining integrity is critical because data is often used to make important decisions; if that data is inaccurate or corrupt, it can lead to misinterpretations and potentially harmful outcomes. Various mechanisms are employed to uphold data integrity, including checksums, hash functions, and access controls, all designed to prevent unauthorized alterations and ensure that the data remains consistent and reliable over time.

Beyond integrity, other aspects of information security encompass different goals. While system availability emphasizes access to and functionality of systems, promoting user awareness relates to educating users about security practices. Limiting data access focuses on controlling who can view or manipulate information but does not directly address the accuracy of the data itself, which is at the heart of integrity.