Does IPsec add overhead for all network communications?

IPsec does indeed add overhead for all network communications due to the additional processing required for securing data packets. When IPsec is implemented, it encapsulates the original IP packets and provides features such as encryption, integrity checks, and authentication. This encapsulation and the associated cryptographic processes introduce extra data that needs to be transmitted alongside the original packet, effectively increasing the size of the data being sent over the network.

Furthermore, the computational resources needed to perform encryption and decryption also contribute to overhead, affecting overall performance. This overhead is a consistent factor, regardless of traffic volume, as the underlying mechanism of IPsec applies similarly across different network conditions. The efficiency of the network can be impacted across all communications when IPsec is utilized, making the statement accurate for all scenarios.