{"id":10822,"date":"2023-05-12T06:11:07","date_gmt":"2023-05-12T06:11:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/?p=10822"},"modified":"2025-09-10T15:21:24","modified_gmt":"2025-09-10T15:21:24","slug":"what-is-a-hash","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-a-hash","title":{"rendered":"What is a Hash?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_82_2 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-transparent ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Alternar tabla de contenidos\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #ffffff;color:#ffffff\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #ffffff;color:#ffffff\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 eztoc-toggle-hide-by-default' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-a-hash\/#who_created_the_hash_functions\" >Who created the Hash functions?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-a-hash\/#how_does_a_hash_function_work\" >How does a Hash function work?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-a-hash\/#security_of_hash_functions\" >Security of Hash functions\u00a0<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-a-hash\/#features\" >Features<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Tiempo de lectura:<\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 4<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutos<\/span><\/span><p>You may have heard about\u00a0<strong>Hash and Hash Function<\/strong>\u00a0in many conversations about cryptocurrencies. In this article we will tell you all about Hash and its role in the world of cryptocurrencies.<\/p>\n<p>To have a general idea we must know that a Hash is the\u00a0<strong>result of a Hash Function<\/strong>. Hash Functions are a type of\u00a0<strong>cryptographic<\/strong>\u00a0operation created, so they would be unique\u00a0<strong>identifiers<\/strong>. These identifiers are derived from the information extracted from each\u00a0<strong>blockchain<\/strong>\u00a0block.<\/p>\n<p>The main purpose of Hash functions is to<strong>\u00a0encode data<\/strong>\u00a0in order to create a unique string of characters. A function can be created regardless of the amount of data implemented in it. These hash functions are mostly used in blockchain technology bringing\u00a0<strong>more security to the blockchain.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"who_created_the_hash_functions\"><\/span><strong>Who created the Hash functions?<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Hashes began to make sense in\u00a0<strong>1953<\/strong>\u00a0when\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/who-is-hans-peter-luhn\/\">Hans Peter Luhn<\/a>, a German computer scientist, thought of a way to quickly find documents and validate them. However, it was not until\u00a0<strong>1961<\/strong>\u00a0that the first hash function was developed. Wesley Peterson developed the\u00a0<strong>Cyclic Redundancy Check<\/strong>\u00a0function.<\/p>\n<p>The main purpose of this function was to<strong>\u00a0check the data<\/strong>\u00a0being transmitted over networks such as the\u00a0<strong>Internet<\/strong>. This feature achieved wide adoption due to its ease of implementation and is still an<strong>\u00a0industry standard<\/strong>\u00a0today.<\/p>\n<p>Subsequently, new functions continued to be created from the development of the first one. Among these functions,<strong>\u00a0MD2<\/strong>\u00a0stands out. This was created by cryptographer and MIT professor Ronald Rivest in\u00a0<strong>1989<\/strong>. The function was one of the<strong>\u00a0first cryptographic functions<\/strong>\u00a0and provided a high level of security on the Internet.\u00a0<strong>MD5<\/strong>\u00a0was created from this function and is implemented in environments where security is not the main objective.<\/p>\n<p><strong>In 1992<\/strong>\u00a0the European\u00a0<strong>RIPE<\/strong>\u00a0project created the cryptographic hash function\u00a0<strong>RIPEMD.<\/strong>\u00a0This function had the task of replacing the\u00a0<strong>MD4<\/strong>\u00a0function.<br \/>\nToday it is still considered a highly secure standard, especially in\u00a0<strong>RIPEMD-256, RIPEMD-160 and RIPEMD-320.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>In 1993 the NSA<\/strong>\u00a0created SHA, the current standard for cryptographic hashes. The purpose of its creation was to\u00a0<strong>authenticate electronic documents<\/strong>. Currently, this function and its derivatives are considered the most secure to date. Among its derivatives we can highlight\u00a0<strong>SHA-256<\/strong>\u00a0as a fundamental technology that paved the way for the existence of\u00a0<strong>Bitcoin<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"is-divider divider clearfix\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"image_1227312271\" class=\"img has-hover x md-x lg-x y md-y lg-y\">\n<div class=\"img-inner dark\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"attachment-large size-large lazyloaded smush-detected-img smush-image-2\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Qu%C3%A9-es-una-funci%C3%B3n-Hash2.jpg\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Qu\u00e9-es-una-funci\u00f3n-Hash2.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Qu\u00e9-es-una-funci\u00f3n-Hash2-300x205.jpg 300w\" alt=\"Qu\u00e9-es-una-funci\u00f3n-Hash\" width=\"768\" height=\"526\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Qu\u00e9-es-una-funci\u00f3n-Hash2.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Qu\u00e9-es-una-funci\u00f3n-Hash2-300x205.jpg 300w\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Qu\u00e9-es-una-funci\u00f3n-Hash2.jpg\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"how_does_a_hash_function_work\"><\/span><strong>How does a Hash function work?<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Hash functions, as expected, work on the basis of logical and very complex processes. Such<strong>\u00a0logical processes<\/strong>\u00a0are usually run from a\u00a0<strong>computer<\/strong>\u00a0from which any set of data is taken and processed after being entered into the function. But\u2026 What does the\u00a0<strong>function<\/strong>\u00a0do?<\/p>\n<p>This process seeks to obtain a series of\u00a0<strong>characters<\/strong>\u00a0that have a fixed and unique length for the\u00a0<strong>data entered<\/strong>. It should be noted that it is\u00a0<strong>impossible<\/strong>\u00a0to perform this process in\u00a0<strong>reverse,<\/strong>\u00a0that is, we cannot process the results of a hash function to obtain the\u00a0<strong>initial data<\/strong>. Because of this, it is understood that the process of creating hashes is a\u00a0<strong>one-way<\/strong>\u00a0process.<\/p>\n<p>Being a\u00a0<strong>one-way<\/strong>\u00a0process allows us to create proofs of\u00a0<strong>authenticity<\/strong>. If we create a document and submit it to<strong>\u00a0hashing<\/strong>\u00a0we will get an irreversible result. If someone edits, copies or modifies the document the hash will\u00a0<strong>change<\/strong>\u00a0so we will always know when a document has been\u00a0<strong>modified<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"is-divider divider clearfix\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"image_1836741577\" class=\"img has-hover x md-x lg-x y md-y lg-y\">\n<div class=\"img-inner dark\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"attachment-large size-large lazyloaded smush-detected-img smush-image-3\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Qu%C3%A9-es-una-funci%C3%B3n-Hash.jpg\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Qu\u00e9-es-una-funci\u00f3n-Hash.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Qu\u00e9-es-una-funci\u00f3n-Hash-300x205.jpg 300w\" alt=\"Qu\u00e9-es-una-funci\u00f3n-Hash\" width=\"768\" height=\"526\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Qu\u00e9-es-una-funci\u00f3n-Hash.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Qu\u00e9-es-una-funci\u00f3n-Hash-300x205.jpg 300w\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Qu\u00e9-es-una-funci\u00f3n-Hash.jpg\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"security_of_hash_functions\"><\/span><strong>Security of Hash functions\u00a0<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>In terms of security, hash functions are <strong>extremely secure<\/strong>. This is because they are created to improve the security of<strong>\u00a0digital information<\/strong>. Their main purpose is to keep attackers away and prevent them from carrying out\u00a0<strong>attacks<\/strong>\u00a0on the information that the hashes are intended to\u00a0<strong>protect<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>These\u00a0<strong>high levels of security<\/strong>\u00a0come from features such as those found in the world of\u00a0<strong>cryptography.<\/strong>\u00a0Both technologies are based on the same concepts. However, it should be noted that hash functions are not completely\u00a0<strong>unbreakable<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>To get an idea, we can use the example of the<strong>\u00a0MD5<\/strong>\u00a0function. This function provided outstanding security and its use was extended to the entire Internet. However, in\u00a0<strong>1996<\/strong>\u00a0it became obsolete, since the security of the function was\u00a0<strong>broken<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Currently there are functions such as\u00a0<strong>RIPEMD-160 and SHA-256<\/strong>\u00a0which guarantee high security based on the complexity of their operation. In case we are not convinced by their reputation for security, we can consider what it would take to break them. It would only take<strong>\u00a0thousands of years and today\u2019s supercomputers<\/strong>\u00a0working non-stop. So yes, you can say they are unbreakable.<\/p>\n<p>Although the latter functions ensure the\u00a0<strong>high security<\/strong>\u00a0required, new ways of ensuring security in\u00a0<strong>digital processes<\/strong>\u00a0are still being investigated.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"features\"><\/span><strong>Features<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>It is easy to recognize a Hash function by its\u00a0<strong>characteristics<\/strong>. Here are some of the main ones.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Ease of calculation.\u00a0<\/b>They are easy to calculate thanks to the efficiency of Hash algorithms. They do not require large computational powers to compute.<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Avalanche type function.\u00a0<\/b>This means that, in case any minimal change in the data input is executed, a Hash different from the original one will be generated.<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Hashes are irreversible.\u00a0<\/b>As mentioned before, it is not possible (in theory) to obtain the original data through the result of a Hash function. Thanks to this, Hashes are totally secure.<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>They present weak as well as strong resistance to collisions.\u00a0<\/b>This means that it is not possible to calculate a Hash that leads to another Hash of the same type. These are called pre-image and second image, concepts from which the security of hashes is based.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In short, Hash functions are very useful in the\u00a0<strong>digital world<\/strong>. Because they are\u00a0<strong>fast and efficient<\/strong>, unique and computationally inexpensive, Hashes have become the centerpiece of c<strong>ryptocurrencies<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>In the Bitcoin\u00a0<strong>whitepaper<\/strong>, Satoshi Nakamoto explained in detail why\u00a0<strong>Hashes<\/strong>\u00a0are used for cryptocurrencies and how to\u00a0<strong>use them<\/strong>. Since the launch of Bitcoin the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-blockchain-and-how-does-it-work\/\">blockchain<\/a>\u00a0technology has totally evolved, however, parts of it still remain. Among them the use of Hashes and\u00a0<strong>cryptography<\/strong>, as they are strong tools that protect the\u00a0<strong>security<\/strong>\u00a0of the network.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Tiempo de lectura:<\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 4<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutos<\/span><\/span>You may have heard about\u00a0Hash and Hash Function\u00a0in many conversations about cryptocurrencies. In this article we will tell you all about Hash and its role in the world of cryptocurrencies. To have a general idea we must know that a Hash is the\u00a0result of a Hash Function. Hash Functions are a type of\u00a0cryptographic\u00a0operation created, so [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7152,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[185],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10822","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blockchain-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10822","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10822"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10822\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24612,"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10822\/revisions\/24612"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7152"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10822"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10822"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10822"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}