Masking
# Masking

Masking can mean:

## Arts and media

* Backmasking, a recording technique in which a sound or message is recorded backward onto a track meant to be played forward
* Masking (art), protecting a selected area from change during production, as with tape and stencils
* Masking (illustration), an art technique that influences the intended perception of a character

## Data protection

* Data masking, replacing data with random characters or data to conceal sensitive information
   * Blinded experiment, in which data is masked to prevent bias
* Masking (Electronic Health Record), patient-requested concealment of information from healthcare providers
* Masking and unmasking by intelligence agencies, to protect the privacy of unintentional surveillance targets
* Sound masking, intentional introduction of background sounds to improve comfort and privacy

## Sensory phenomena

* Auditory masking, sensory phenomena where perception of one sound is affected by another
   * Temporal masking
   * Simultaneous masking
* Visual masking
* Backward masking, in psychovisual or psychoacoustics

## Other technologies

* Mask (computing), AND'ing or OR'ing a bit pattern with another bit pattern to select certain bits
* Masking agent, a reagent used in chemical analysis which reacts with chemical species which may interfere in the analysis
* Sound masking, intentional introduction of background sounds to improve comfort and privacy
* Spectral mask, a method for reducing adjacent-channel interference in broadcast applications

## Other uses

* Masking (personality), in which an individual changes their personality to conform to social pressure
* Autistic masking, the suppression of autistic behaviors and compensation of social difficulties in autistic people
* Female masking, a form of male cross-dressing
* Applying or using a facial mask
