Transport Layer Security (TLS) is a protocol that ensures privacy and security between communicating applications and users on the internet. It ensures that no third party can eavesdrop or tamper with messages by encrypting data and verifying the identities of communicating devices. The TLS handshake process involves a client connecting to a server, specifying security parameters, and the server selecting an encryption method and cryptographic keys to use. TLS provides benefits like encryption, flexibility in algorithms, interoperability between systems, and ease of deployment for applications.