This will show you how to understand what the hash function is and how to investigate it in different ways.
What are the most popular hash functions?
- The most common hash functions used in digital forensics are Message Digest 5 (MD5), and Secure Hashing Algorithm (SHA) 1 and 2.
| Hash functions | Provide a brief overview of each one | Example | How big a hash value do they produce? (Digest size /length) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Message Digest 5 (MD5) | The MD5, defined in RFC 1321, is a hash algorithm to turn inputs into a fixed 128-bit (16 bytes) length of the hash value. MD5 is not collision-resistant – Two different inputs may producing the same hash value | Text: goodbyeMyfriend888 Hash message: 0ea6c58190e34e9a23ccb0de1df8a77d | 128 bits |
| Hashing Algorithm (SHA) – 1 | a cryptographic hash function which takes an input and produces a 160-bit (20-byte) hash value. This hash value is known as a message digest. This message digest is usually then rendered as a hexadecimal number which is 40 digits long. | Phrase: Go Steelers! Hash message: c924 4cac 47b3 4335 5aed 06f3 cc85 ea82 885f 9f3e | 160 bits |
| Hashing Algorithm (SHA) – 2 | They are built using the Merkle–Damgård construction, from a one-way compression function itself built using the Davies–Meyer structure from a specialized block cipher. It’s a family of functions with different output size | SHA-256: Text: helloAbcdefg17 Hash message: 7fdbb09efef10cc600b05f87a838919d73e5ffcabee3525e60c57c0258478b33 | 224, 256(SHA-256), 384, or 512 bits |
References
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