_tsbWA-hash

Hashes are mostly used in security scenarios, to compare a current data value against an original data value.

Common scenarios for using a hash

• You have a file of which you want to be able to check whether it has been tampered with. You can create a hash value from the original file and save it for reference purposes. When at a later moment you want to verify whether the file is still in its original state, you can create a new hash and compare it to the initial hash.
• You have login functionality. Instead of saving user passwords, you can save a hash value that is based on the user's password. When the user attempts to log in, you can compare a hash of the password provided to the original hash value that you have.

Characteristics of a hash

A hash is a data value that is created by feeding data into an algorithmic function to create hashes. This function will turn the data into new data. The new data has several characteristics:

• It has a fixed size.
• Input data that is fairly similar will be turned in output data that is highly dissimilar.
• It is highly unlikely to be able to retrieve the input data from the output data.

Different algorithms to create hashes

There are several algorithms to create a hash. SmartBridge supports the following: MD5, SHA-1, SHA256, SHA384, SHA512. Although it is a fast algorithm, we do not recommend using MD5.