What are encryption and hashing?

Excerpt

This post explains encryption for confidentiality and hashing for integrity - their workings, applications, and significance in data protection.

Safeguarding sensitive data is critical in the digital age. Encryption and hashing are two fundamental techniques used to protect confidentiality and integrity of information. This post provides an easy explanation of encryption vs hashing, how they work, common applications, and their importance in data security.

Introduction

Encryption is the process of encoding data to prevent unauthorized access. It transforms plaintext into ciphertext that is unreadable without decryption keys. Hashing generates unique fixed-size signatures for data that enable verifying integrity. Together, encryption and hashing provide pivotal data protection services. Let’s explore them further.

Encryption

Encryption is a method for securing data by scrambling it into an undecipherable format called ciphertext. Only authorized parties with the decryption key can reverse the cipher and read the plaintext.

For example, an encryption algorithm might swap letters based on a numeric key:

Plaintext: TOP SECRET

Key: 4

Ciphertext: XLM WIGVIX

This simple cipher jumbles the message to protect confidentiality. Modern encryption uses complex cryptographic functions for robust security.

Common algorithms include AES, RSA, etc. Encryption keys must be properly secured.

How Encryption Works

The encryption process follows these main steps:

1. Input plaintext data is processed by an encryption algorithm along with a generated secret key.

2. The algorithm applies substitutions, permutations and other mathematical operations using the key.

3. Unreadable ciphertext output is produced that appears random.

4. The secret key is required to decrypt the ciphertext back into plaintext.

Longer key lengths boost security but incur more processing overhead. Proper key management is crucial.

Applications of Encryption

Encryption safeguards sensitive data in transit and at rest:

• Email, messaging apps, video calls apply end-to-end encryption for privacy.

• Disk and file encryption protect data on devices and cloud storage from theft.

• Secure websites use encryption across networks to ensure privacy and security.

• Blockchains utilize encryption to verify transactions and exchange digital assets securely.

Hashing

Hashing is the process of mapping data of any size to a fixed-size output called a hash value. Hashes act like unique fingerprints and enable detecting any changes to data:

Input Data -> Hash Function -> Hash Value

Common hash algorithms are MD5, SHA256, BLAKE3 etc.

How Hashing Works

A hash function follows these key steps:

1. Take input data of any size like text, image, video etc.

2. Apply mathematical operations/compression functions on the bits.

3. Generate a fixed-length hash value fingerprint.

Even a slight change in the input drastically alters the hash due to the avalanche effect. This allows checking data integrity.

Applications of Hashing

Key uses of hashing include:

• File integrity verification by comparing file hashes

• Storing password hashes rather than plain passwords for login

• Digital signatures using the hash of documents

• Blockchain transaction verification using transaction hashes

Comparison of Encryption and Hashing

Conclusion

Encryption and hashing provide fundamental yet complementary data security services - confidentiality and integrity. Both leverage complex mathematical functions and play crucial roles in modern data protection. Understanding their workings, applications and differences enables securely harnessing them in solutions ranging from authentication to blockchain.