In the earlier article, we discussed cryptography in the blockchain and why it is necessary for the security of the blockchain ecosystem. Today's article will discuss how is Cryptographic Hashing useful in Blockchain tech?

As we know, Cryptography refers to the practice of developing protocols to prevent third parties from accessing and viewing data. Modern cryptographic applications combine various disciplines such as physics, math, computer science, engineering, and others.

Cryptographic hashing is a process that transforms any data form into a unique text string. Any data piece of data can be hashed, regardless of its type, scale, length, or size. The result is a string of a fixed length.

When blockchain was first used for cryptocurrencies, it employed a predetermined hashing algorithm for transactions of varying lengths. The hashing process is unaffected by the length of the input. A Hash is a name given to the output.

How is Cryptographic Hashing useful in Blockchain?

One of the significant highlights in blockchain cryptography illustrated adequately is cryptographic hashing. Cryptographic hashing is a fundamental component of blockchain technology. The most important feature of blockchain is immutability, which is enabled by hashing. Cryptographic hashing encryption does not require the use of keys.

In contrast, hashing in cryptography employs a cipher or an algorithm to generate a hash value of a specific length from the input. Hashing is the process of taking any length string as input and producing a fixed length output. The use of the SHA-256 hash function is one of the most typical applications of hashing in the blockchain.

Cryptographic hash functions have several distinguishing characteristics that contribute to their usefulness in blockchain cryptography. Here's a rundown of the characteristics that make cryptographic hash functions suitable for blockchain applications.

1. Deterministic cryptographic hash functions: No matter how many times you enter a specific input, the hash function always returns the same length output. So, whether you enter a string of 3 or 200 characters, you will get the exact length output, i.e., 32 characters in a fixed string with a combination of numbers and letters.

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Written By Shubhada Pande