Get the weekly summary of crypto market analysis, news, and forecasts! This Week’s Summary The crypto market ends the week at a total market capitalization of $2,17 trillion. Bitcoin continues to trade at around $62,300. Ethereum experiences no changes and stagnates at around $2,400. XRP is down by 2%, Solana by 1%, and Dogecoin by 3%. Almost all altcoins are trading in the red, with very few exceptions. The DeFi sector decreased the total value of protocols (TVL) to around…
Blockhain Hashing Algorithms Explained – All You Need to Know
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A Hash is a central concept in all modern communication, storage, and security. Some might even call Hashing the backbone of the internet. But when we say hash, what do we mean? Is it simply something to do with random numbers? Are numbers that important?
This introduction may seem challenging, but the concept is not difficult. Of course, we will not enter into the details of the algorithm’s functioning, but we will describe it in essence and see what a hash can do.
What is Hashing?
Hashing is an algorithm that calculates a fixed-size bit string value from a file. A file contains blocks of data. Hashing transforms this data into a shorter fixed-length value or key representing the original string. The hash value can be considered the distilled summary of everything within that file.
For better perception, look at the illustration below. Using a simple hash function called SHA-256 makes the result unique and falsifiable. A change in a single character leads to a completely irrelevant result, probabilistically guaranteed to be unique to that input.
A hash algorithm determines how the hash function is going to be used. It is, therefore, important to differentiate between the algorithm and the function. A good hash algorithm should be complex enough not to produce the same hash value from two inputs. If it does, this is known as a hash collision. A hash algorithm can only be considered reasonable and acceptable if it can offer a meager collision chance.
Hashes come in different varieties, from simple, computationally easy functions to functions that use astronomical amounts of computation power. One of the most famous hashing algorithms is the Message Digest (MD) series, in which MD5 is the most widely used.
The MD5 hash function encodes a string of information and encodes it into a 128-bit fingerprint. MD5 is often used as a checksum to verify data integrity. However, due to its age, MD5 is also known to suffer from extensive hash collision vulnerabilities, but it’s still one of the most widely used algorithms globally.
Hashing is used to validate the content’s integrity by detecting all modifications and changes to a hash output. Encryption encodes data for the primary purpose of maintaining data confidentiality and security. You can see the use of a Hash in almost any area which requires
- Confidentiality
- Proof and Refutation
- Time Stamping
- Falsifiable Continuity
Top 3 Hashing Algorithms in Blockchain
-
Secure Hashing Algorithm (SHA) 256
SHA-2, developed by the National Security Agency (NSA), is a cryptographic hash function. SHA-2 includes significant changes from its predecessor, SHA-1. The SHA-2 family consists of six hash functions with digests (hash values) 224, 256, 384, or 512 bits: SHA-224, SHA-256, SHA-384, SHA-512, SHA-512/224, SHA-512/256.
-
X11
This algorithm, designed for cryptocurrencies, is still more secure than the algorithm SHA-256 and presents the advantage of not being used by “Application Specific Integrated Circuits.” It is currently used in several crypto-currencies, the most famous being Dash.
X11 organizes a chain of 11 hash algorithms: Blake, BMW, groestl, JH, keccak, skein, Luffa, cubehash, shavite, SIMD, and echo. To fail, all of the 11 hashing algorithms must default simultaneously. It is estimated that the probability of such a situation is close to zero. This is why ASICs cannot perform Algorithm X11 since it includes 11 different algorithms.
-
ETH Hash
Ethash is the proof-of-work function in Ethereum-based blockchain currencies. It is a hash function belonging to the Keccak family, the same family to which the SHA-3 hash functions belong. However, Ethash is not an SHA-3 function and should not be confused with them.
Bitcoin and SHA-256
SHA-256 (“Secured Hash Algorithm 256″) is the algorithm that was chosen by the designer(s) Satoshi Nakamoto. It is used to create the public key from the private key and realize work proof. This algorithm was developed by the NSA (” United States National Security Agency”) in 2001. It continues to be used by many financial institutions and governments to encrypt their data.
However, Bitcoin’s success poses a significant problem concerning using the algorithm SHA-256. As we have already seen, each new bitcoin created returns to the miner who has carried out and submitted first to the network the “Proof of work.” However, the likelihood of a minor providing the “Proof of work” in the first position is directly proportional to the calculation capacity it can deploy on the network, i.e., the hashing power.
In the above example, the hash algorithm is SHA256, the Protocol Bitcoin uses. The object to which it applies the function (“input”) is a numeric value whose size can vary according to the algorithm. Here the input is pieces of sentences, but it is possible to imagine any data (Figures, letters, signs…) having a different size.
Btc
Bitcoin
$62.547
price
price
0.84959%
price change
The size corresponds to the number of characters composing the data group. Therefore, the three inputs are submitted together to the hash algorithm. The numerical value that results in “output” is permanently fixed (between 160 and 512 bits according to the function). In the case of SHA256, the output’s size is always 256 bits, or 256 characters…logic.
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