Hash functions
A hash function is a mathematical algorithm used to turn data of any
size into a fixed length string of characters known as a hash. The
output of a hash function is designed to be unique, so that any change
to the input data should produce a different hash. Hash functions are
used in many cryptographic applications, such as digital signatures and
message authentication codes, as well as for data integrity
validation.
Properties of a hashing
algorithm
- Stable: the same input generates the same output every time
- Uniform: the hash values should be uniformly distributed through the
available space
- Efficient: the cost of generating a hash must be balanced with
application need
- Secure: the cost of finding data that produces a given hash is
prohibitive
String hashing
- Sum ASCII values: not uniform, not secure
- Fold bytes of every four characters into an integer: not secure
- CRC32: not secure
- MD5: not efficient, not secure
- SHA2: stable, uniform, not efficient, secure