Requests are submitted to a request processing entity where the requests include a cryptographic key to be used in fulfilling the request. The request processing entity, upon receipt of the request, extracts the key from the request and uses the key to perform one or more cryptographic operations to fulfill the request. The one or more cryptographic operations may include encryption/decryption of data that to be/is stored, in encrypted form, by a subsystem of the request processing entity. Upon fulfillment of the request, the request processing entity may perform one or more operations to lose access to the key in the request, thereby losing the ability to use the key.