Encryption vs Hashing: What’s the Difference?

Have you ever locked your bike to a post, only to forget the combination later? That’s a bit like encryption. You’ve got something you can unlock if you’ve got the right key.

Now imagine smashing that lock into unrecognizable pieces. That’s hashing. You can’t put it back together, no matter what.

Let’s explore encryption vs hashing, decipher their differences, and understand why they’re crucial in our tech-driven world. Get ready, you’re about to become a cybersecurity whiz.

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Table of Contents

1. What Is Encryption?
2. What Is Hashing?
3. What Is the Difference Between Encryption and Hashing?

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What Is Encryption?

You’ve likely heard of encryption, but what exactly is it? Simply put, it’s converting data into a code to prevent unauthorized access, but there’s much more to it.

Encryption is a complex and essential technique that uses algorithms to transform information into an unreadable format, ensuring data confidentiality during transmission or storage.

In the next few sections, we’ll explain how encryption works, explore common algorithms used, and provide real-world examples to help you understand its practical applications.

How Does Encryption Work?

Encryption is like a secure vault for your digital information. When you send data online, whether it’s a message or personal details, encryption transforms it into a code that’s nearly impossible for unauthorized parties to decipher.

It’s a sophisticated cryptographic system, ensuring that only the intended recipient can make sense of the information.

Imagine you’re shopping online or checking your bank account. When you see “https” in the website address, that’s the signal that encryption is at work. It indicates your data is being scrambled into a secret code as it travels between your device and the website’s server. Even if someone tries to intercept this data, all they’ll get is random strings of characters.

Here’s how the encryption process occurs step-by-step on the Web:

1. User connects to a website: When you visit a secure website (URL starts with “https://”), your browser requests the site’s server to establish a secure connection.
2. The server sends its public key: The website’s server responds by sending its public key to your browser.
3. The browser checks the certificate: The server also provides a digital certificate, which your browser verifies to ensure it’s legitimate.
4. Browser generates a session key: Your browser creates a random symmetric key (session key) for this specific session.
5. Encrypting with the public key: Your browser encrypts the session key with the server’s public key and sends it back to the server.
6. The server decrypts the session key: The server uses its private key to decrypt the session key.
7. Secure connection established: Now, both your browser and the server have the same session key for this session, and they use it to encrypt and decrypt data exchanged during your visit to the website.
8. Secure data transfer: All data transmitted between your browser and the server is encrypted using the session key, ensuring the privacy and integrity of the information.

What Are the Most Common Encryption Algorithms?

Encryption uses mathematical procedures or rules known as encryption algorithms to convert plain text into cipher text. The diversity of encryption algorithms arises from the need to address varying security requirements.

The symmetric encryption algorithm is a popular one. It uses the same secret key for both encryption and decryption, ensuring a straightforward process.

Two of the most common symmetric encryption algorithms are the Data Encryption Standard (DES) and the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES). DES, although outdated, was once a prevalent method for encrypting data. On the other hand, AES is currently the industry standard, widely adopted for its robustness against attacks.

RSA (Rivest-Shamir-Adleman) is another widely used Public Key Cryptography asymmetric encryption algorithm. It uses a pair of keys: a public key for encryption and a private key for decryption. Messages encrypted with the public key can only be decrypted with the corresponding private key, and vice versa.

We’ve already written a comprehensive guide on encryption algorithms. Check it out for an in-depth overview.

What Are Some Examples of Encryption?

Whether sending messages, conducting online transactions, or storing data, you must encrypt information in today’s digital space. Here are practical examples of encryption in action:

• Secure Communication (Public-Key Encryption): Asymmetric encryption, with its public and private keys, is commonly used in messaging apps, email services, and online communication platforms to encrypt data and protect user’s confidentiality.
• Online Banking (SSL/TLS Encryption): When you access your bank account or make transactions online, encryption ensures the security of your financial information, such as account numbers and transaction details.
• Virtual Private Networks (VPN) (Tunneling and Data Encryption): VPNs utilize a combination of tunneling protocols (like IPSec or OpenVPN) for secure communication and encryption to protect data during transit.
• File Storage and Cloud Services (AES Encryption): Advanced Encryption Standard, with its single encryption key, is commonly employed for file integrity and data stored in the cloud.
• Government and Military Communications (AES, RSA, etc.): Government agencies like NSA (National Security Agency) and military communications often involve several encryption methods, including RSA and other sophisticated algorithms. These technologies protect sensitive information and communications critical to national security.

These examples help you grasp the critical role encryption plays in data integrity and protection. Now, let’s turn our attention to hashing.

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What Is Hashing?

Hashing is a process of converting distinct input data (or ‘message’) of arbitrary size into a fixed-size string of characters, which is typically a sequence of numbers and letters. The output, commonly referred to as a hash value or hash code, is generated by a hash function. Hash functions are designed to be fast and efficient, and they should produce unique hash values for different inputs.

How Does Hashing Work?

Let’s break down the concept of hashing in simple terms

First, you select a suitable hashing algorithm, such as SHA-256 or MD5. Then, develop a hash function. The hash function will transform input data into a fixed-length hash value.

Now, let’s take the data that you need to hash. It could be a password, a document, or any other information, and apply the hash function to the input data. The hash function processes the data, creating a unique hash value as the output.

The resulting output of the hash function is the hash value, a string of characters, typically in hexadecimal format, with a consistent length. Hashing the same input data using the same algorithm and hash function will consistently yield the same hash value. This deterministic property ensures predictability.

Even a slight alteration in the input data leads to a substantially different hash value. This characteristic ensures uniqueness among hash codes for different sets of data.

Hash codes serve as unique identifiers, enabling efficient computer comparisons to determine whether data are identical or different.

The function produces a hash value with a fixed length, regardless of the input data size. This standardized format simplifies storage and comparison processes.

In specific scenarios, you can employ hash sums, a specialized form of hash value, to provide a condensed summary of extensive datasets.

What Are the Most Common Hashing Algorithms?

Hashing algorithms are ever present in computer science and cryptography for various purposes, including data integrity verification, password storage, and digital signatures. Here are some of the most common hashing algorithms:

1. MD5 (Message Digest Algorithm 5): MD5 produces a 128-bit hash value, typically rendered as a 32-character hexadecimal number. However, MD5 is considered cryptographically broken and unsuitable for further use due to vulnerabilities that allow collision attacks.
2. SHA-1 (Secure Hash Algorithm 1): SHA-1 produces a 160-bit hash value. Like MD5, SHA-1 is also considered weak and vulnerable to various attacks and is now obsolete.
3. SHA-256, SHA-384, and SHA-512: Part of the SHA-2 family and are considered much more secure than MD5 and SHA-1, SHA-256 produces a 256-bit hash, and is the standard hashing algorithm used today in digital signatures and certificate generation.
4. SHA-3 (Secure Hash Algorithm 3): This latest SHA algorithm, offers a different internal structure from SHA-2 and provides a set of hash functions with distinct output sizes.
5. Whirlpool: Whirlpool is a hash function that produces a 512-bit hash value. It is not as widely used as other algorithms but is considered secure.

What Are Some Examples of Hashing?

1. In data integrity verification, hashing ensures data hasn’t been tampered with. Before transmission or storage, the original data hash value (checksum) is calculated and sent along with the data. Upon retrieval, the hash is recalculated and compared, verifying data integrity.
2. For password storage, hashing adds a layer of security by storing password hash values instead of the actual passwords. During login, the entered password is hashed and compared to the stored hash, minimizing risks in case of a data breach.
3. Digital signatures use hashing to create a hash of a message or document, which is then encrypted with a private key. Recipients can verify authenticity using the sender’s public key.
4. Caching stores previously computed results for quick retrieval, using hash values as keys. This optimizes performance, as the cache is consulted using the hash value when a new request matches a prior input.
5. Finally, in blockchain, each block contains a hash of the previous block, forming an unbroken chain. This design ensures tamper resistance, as altering one block requires changing all subsequent blocks.

Now, let’s see how hashing is different from encryption.

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What Is the Difference Between Encryption and Hashing?

When comparing hashing and encryption, the main difference lies in the reversibility of the process.

Encryption encodes data in such a way that only authorized parties can read it. It uses an algorithm and a key to transform plaintext into ciphertext. Importantly, this process is reversible – given the correct key, you can decrypt the ciphertext back into plaintext.

Encryption is used when the information stored needs to be retrieved in its original form, like when you’re sending sensitive emails or storing confidential files.

On the other hand, hashing is a one-way function. It takes an input and returns a fixed-size string of bytes, typically a digest. Unlike encryption, hashing doesn’t require a key, and the process is irreversible.

You can’t get your original message back from the hash value. When you enter your password, the system hashes it and compares the result to the stored hash. If they match, you’re granted access.

In encryption, a slight change in plaintext results in a significantly different ciphertext. But with hashing, even a small change in input will generate an entirely different hash. This property, known as the ‘avalanche effect’, increases security against attacks.

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FAQ

Is Hashing Better Than Encryption?

Hashing is not inherently better or worse than encryption; it serves different purposes. Hashing is primarily used for data integrity verification, while encryption focuses on securing information for confidentiality.

Is Hashing the Same as Encryption?

Hashing vs encryption are both cryptographic techniques. Hashing transforms data into a fixed-length value string for tasks like data integrity verification, while encryption secures sensitive data through reversible transformations.

Why Is Hashing Irreversible?

Hashing is irreversible because it condenses data into a fixed-size string, eliminating the possibility of retrieval.

Can Hashed Data Be Encrypted?

No, hashed data cannot be encrypted. Hashing is a one-way process that irreversibly transforms data, making it unsuitable for encryption.

Is Hashing Still Used?

Yes, hashing is still widely used, especially for tasks like password storage and digital signatures.

When to Use Encryption vs Hashing?

Use encryption when you need to protect data with the intention of later decryption and use hashing when you want to securely store and verify data without the possibility of reversal.

Encryption vs Hashing vs Encoding – What’s the Difference?

Encryption transforms data using a key, making it unreadable to unauthorized users. It’s reversible with the right key. Hashing generates a fixed-size hash from input data, providing a unique fingerprint. It’s one-way and not reversible. Encoding converts data for compatibility but is easily reversible, serving formatting purposes, not security.

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Conclusion

In summary, data security relies on a mix of encryption and hashing. Encryption keeps things confidential, making data readable with the right key. Hashing ensures integrity by creating irreversible codes, so the original data stays safe.

Think of it like hashing passwords for protection and using encryption to keep sensitive data safe during transfer or storage. Combining these methods secures sensitive data on the ever-changing Internet.