Why, when it comes to the security of online payments, it's difficult for me to figure out exactly how things like end-to-end encryption, tokenization, and the PCI DSS standard work, because unlike a water filter, where the result of protection is immediately visible, digital "filters" remain invisible, and I don't understand how do they really guarantee the reliability of my transactions?

Every time I make an online transaction, I feel a sense of uncertainty. Terms like PCI DSS sound impressive, but they remain abstract. I like the idea that such mechanisms are similar to filters, only in the digital world. This is exactly what article https://aijourn.com/from-water-filters-to-finan... says, and this analogy makes it easier to perceive the invisible work of protection.