FIPS 140-3: Why Government-Grade Cryptography Matters (Part 1)

Welcome to Technically U! In this first part of our two-episode deep dive, we break down one of the most important cybersecurity standards in the world: FIPS 140-3 — the U.S. government’s gold standard for cryptographic security.

If you work in cybersecurity, cloud architecture, software development, healthcare, finance, defense contracting, or handle any kind of sensitive data… FIPS 140-3 affects you more than you think.

In Part One, we cover:

🔐 What FIPS 140-3 actually is and why it exists

🏛️ How the government tests and certifies “approved” cryptographic modules

💻 The difference between encryption algorithms vs. validated implementations

📜 The history of FIPS 140-1, 140-2, and why 140-3 matters today

🧪 The four security levels — from baseline software to tamper-resistant, self-protecting hardware

💼 Why FIPS validation is required for government agencies and contractors

🏥 Why industries like healthcare, finance, and critical infrastructure rely on FIPS certification

⚠️ What FIPS protects against (and what it doesn’t)

Whether you're securing government systems, building enterprise apps, designing authentication systems, protecting cloud workloads, or simply curious about what “FIPS-validated cryptography” actually means… this episode gives you the foundation you need.

👉 Part Two will cover real-world applications, challenges, limitations, the future of FIPS, and the emerging push toward post-quantum cryptography.

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