The first technology that was introduced in SQL Server 2016 to address the need for increased/improved security is Row-Level Security (RLS). RLS provides the ability to control access to rows in a table based on the user executing a query. With RLS it is possible to implement a filtering mechanism on any table in a database, completely transparently to any external application or direct T-SQL access. The ability to implement such filtering without having to redesign a data access layer allows system administrators to control access to data at an even more granular level than before. The fact that this control can be achieved without any application logic redesign makes this feature potentially even more attractive to certain use-cases. RLS also makes it possible, in conjunction with the necessary auditing features, to lock down a SQL Server database so that even the traditional god-mode sysadmin cannot access the underlying data.