Which concept in programming allows you to hide the implementation details from the user?

The concept that allows you to hide the implementation details from the user is encapsulation. Encapsulation is a fundamental principle of object-oriented programming that involves bundling the data (attributes) and the methods (functions) that operate on that data into a single unit, often called a class. By exposing only specific parts of the object's functionality through a public interface while keeping the internal workings private, encapsulation ensures that the user can interact with the object without needing to understand the complexities of its implementation. This helps in maintaining security, ensuring data integrity, and reducing the risk of unintended interference with the internal structure of an object.

In encapsulation, members of a class can be marked as private, meaning they cannot be accessed directly from outside the class. Instead, access is provided through public methods, often referred to as getters and setters, which give controlled access to the object's data. This contributes to the robustness and maintainability of code, as changes to the internal implementation can be made without affecting external code that relies on the class.

While inheritance, abstraction, and polymorphism are also essential concepts in object-oriented programming, they serve different purposes. Inheritance allows for the creation of new classes based on existing ones; abstraction provides a simplified model focusing on essential characteristics while