Integrity is an important consideration for security assurance. In this article I will explore the importance of hash functions and an associated type of function known as a Key Derivation Function (KDF).

Fast hash functions

In an digital setting we would like to know that if we are given a particular file that it is the one we expect. Part of that assurance will come down to whether we trust the source of the file; however, hash functions are a technical control that can help us to gain assurance that the file we just obtained is the file we want. This is important as there can be errors in the transmission of data and that an attacker could try to modify a file while it is in transit. There are more sophisticated scenarios which will be ignored for the purpose of this illustration.

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