> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://http3-explained.haxx.se/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://http3-explained.haxx.se/en/why-quic/why-secure.md).

# Secure

QUIC is always secure. There is no clear-text version of the protocol so to negotiate a QUIC connection means doing cryptography and security with TLS 1.3. As mentioned above, this prevents ossification as well as other sorts of blocks and special treatments, as well as making sure QUIC has all the secure properties of HTTPS that web users have come to expect and want.

There are only a few initial handshake packets that are sent in the clear before the encryption protocols have been negotiated.