They aren't really concepts but rather specific keywords that tend to occur (with slightly different semantics) in popular languages like C++ and Java.
Essentially, they are meant to allow a class to restrict access to members (fields or functions). The idea is that the less one type is allowed to access in another type, the less dependency can be created. This allows the accessed object to be changed more easily without affecting objects that refer to it.
Broadly speaking, public means everyone is allowed to access, private means that only members of the same class are allowed to access, and protected means that members of subclasses are also allowed. However, each language adds its own things to this. For example, C++ allows you to inherit non-publicly. In Java, there is also a default (package) access level, and there are rules about internal classes, etc.
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