Data obfuscation is commonly used as it increases anonymity and preserves relationships within a dataset that would often be destroyed in more rigorous forms of masking.
Proprietary software developers are constantly developing techniques such as code obfuscation, encryption, and self-modifying code to make this modification increasingly difficult.
All too often scientists and doctors lapse into euphemism and obfuscation when describing procedures that must be unendurable in a small number of cases.