Hashing - Basics

• One way encryption - takes plain text and convert it to cipher text
• Output = hash, hash value or message digest

Always Fixed Length:

• Regardless of how small or large the text is
• One way hash function aka Thumbprint

Hashing Algorithms in use:

• MD2 - Used in Privacy Enhanced Mail (PEM) protocols along with MD5
• MD4 - Used in PGP and other systems, mostly obsolete
• MD5 - Very popular 128 bit encrpytion, replaced by SHA2
• MD6
• Haval - Modification of MD5. (Hash Algorithm of Variable Length)
• Ripe MD - Commonly used in Europe
• SHA0 - Mostly obsolete
• SHA1 - Compromised and replaced by SHA2
• SHA2 - Identifies hash ranges above SHA1 
• (SHA = Secure Hash Algorithm)