id: secret
name: Secret
full-link: /docs/concepts/configuration/secret/
related:
- pods
- volume
tags:
- core-object
- security
short-description: >
  Stores sensitive information, such as passwords, OAuth tokens, and ssh keys.
long-description: >
  Allows for more control over how sensitive information is used and reduces the risk of accidental exposure, including [encryption](https://kubernetes.io/docs/tasks/administer-cluster/encrypt-data/#ensure-all-secrets-are-encrypted) at rest. 
  A {% glossary_tooltip text="Pod" term_id="pod" %} references the secret as a file in a volume mount or by the kubelet pulling images for a pod.
  Secrets are great for confidential data and [ConfigMaps](https://kubernetes.io/docs/tasks/configure-pod-container/configmap/) for non-confidential data.