useEffect<\/em> where we are fetching the public key for the encryption process. After that we have 2 methods, one for encryption and another for decryption and finally a console to log data.<\/p>\n![\"Asymmetric](\"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2024\/09\/enc-code-6.png\")
<\/p>\n
In the above example, you may be wondering why we don\u2019t have an endpoint for the private key, so the answer is very simple: the private key is meant to be kept secret. Exposing it can compromise the security of the encryption and decryption process. In a production environment, private keys should remain on the server and never be sent to or stored on the client side.<\/p>\n
Now, the question is when to use encryption versus hashing. This will become clearer in the upcoming sections. For now, it’s important to first understand what hashing is and how it works.<\/p>\n
What is Hashing<\/h3>\n
Hashing is a process that converts input data of any size into a fixed-size string of characters. Secure Hash Algorithm (SHA)<\/strong> is a renowned hash function that takes an input and returns a fixed-size string, typically a hash digest represented in hexadecimal.<\/p>\nYou may be wondering, can hashing be cracked or decrypted? Hashing is similar to encryption, the only difference between hashing and encryption is that hashing is one-way, meaning once the data is hashed, the resulting hash digest cannot be cracked unless a Brute force attack or Rainbow table attack is used.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s take an example to understand it better. Suppose we have two slightly different inputs \u2018Hello\u2019 and \u2018hello\u2019, hashed with SHA-256 function. The hash digest of the first message will look like<\/p>\n
\"185f8db32271fe25f561a6fc938b2e264306ec304eda518007d1764826381969<\/span>\"<\/pre>\nwhile for the second message it will-<\/p>\n
\"2cf24dba5fb0a30e26e83b2ac5b9e29e1b161e5c1fa7425e73043362938b9824<\/span>\"<\/pre>\nThis is referred to as the avalanche effect. This effect is important in cryptography, as it means even the slightest change in the input message completely changes the output. This will stop attackers from being able to understand what the hash digest originally said and tell the receiver of the message whether or not the message has been changed while in transit.<\/p>\n
![\"Hashing\"](\"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2024\/09\/hashing.png\")
<\/p>\n
Types of SHA<\/h3>\n
SHA-1<\/strong> was released in 1995 with a 160-bit hash length and was widely used in the past for digital signatures and SSL certificates. However, due to the short length of the hash digest, SHA-1 is more easily brute-forced and it can also give the same hash digest to two different values (known as collision), it is no longer considered secure and deprecated for cryptographic purposes.<\/p>\nSHA-2<\/strong> was released in 2001 with a variety of bit lengths from 256 to 512.<\/p>\n\n- SHA-224: hash digest of 224 bits<\/li>\n
- SHA-256: hash digest of 256 bits (64 hex characters)<\/li>\n
- SHA-384: hash digest of 384 bits<\/li>\n
- SHA-512: hash digest of 512 bits<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
SHA-2 is widely used and is considered secure for most cryptographic purposes. It has been used in all SSL certificates, digital signatures, and blockchain technologies since 2016.<\/p>\n
SHA-3<\/strong> was released in 2015 and developed as a backup in case vulnerabilities were found in SHA-2. It uses a different internal structure (Keccak algorithm) and provides additional security. While SHA-2 remains secure and widely used, SHA-3 offers an alternative for higher levels of security.<\/p>\nIn modern cryptography, SHA-2<\/strong> and SHA-3<\/strong> are the preferred.<\/p>\nCurrently, SHA-2 is the industry standard for hashing algorithms. However, SHA-3 may eventually take its place. As SHA-2 becomes outdated or vulnerable, a shift to SHA-3 is likely in the future.<\/p>\n
![\"SHA-256](\"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2024\/09\/hash-code-1.png\")
<\/p>\n
![\"calling](\"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2024\/09\/hash-code-2.png\")
<\/p>\n
![\"SHA-256](\"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2024\/09\/hash-code-3.png\")
<\/p>\n
Now, you have a strong understanding of what Encryption and Hashing are and how they differ from each other. Before concluding the blog let\u2019s see some use cases of Hashing.<\/p>\n
Use cases of Hashing<\/h3>\n
The most important use case of Hashing is to hash a password. Also, SHAs are essential not only for digital signatures and certificates in SSL\/TLS connections, as mentioned earlier, but also play a crucial role in other applications. SHAs are used in protocols such as SSH, S\/MIME (Secure\/Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions), and IPSec.<\/p>\n
\n- Hashing is used in checksums to detect errors in data transmission. Protocols like TCP\/IP use checksums to verify the integrity of data packets transmitted over the internet.<\/li>\n
- Hashing is used in version control systems (e.g., Git) to create unique identifiers (hashes) for each commit. Git uses SHA-1 (and moving towards SHA-256) to generate commit hashes, which track changes in the project history.<\/li>\n
- Hashing is used in blockchains to link blocks and ensure the immutability of the chain. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies use SHA-256 hashing to maintain the integrity of the blockchain and ensure the security of transactions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Conclusion<\/h3>\n
Encryption ensures that sensitive data remains confidential, allowing for secure transmission and storage of information. On the other hand, hashing provides integrity and authenticity, making sure that data is neither tampered with nor easily reversed.<\/p>\n
By leveraging these techniques, you can ensure your applications remain secure, protecting both users and sensitive data from evolving threats. As the need for security grows, staying informed and adopting best practices in encryption and hashing will continue to be essential for JavaScript developers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In today’s digital landscape, the need to secure data is more critical than ever. Whether you’re transmitting sensitive information or storing user credentials, understanding the mechanisms that protect this data is essential. In the world of JavaScript, encryption and hashing are two key techniques that developers can leverage to safeguard information. But what exactly are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1923,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":361},"categories":[5876],"tags":[6525,2572,227,6524,6526,6527],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66212"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1923"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=66212"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66212\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":66449,"href":"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66212\/revisions\/66449"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=66212"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=66212"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=66212"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Encryption\"](\"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2024\/09\/encryption.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"Symmetric](\"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2024\/09\/symmetric-encryption.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"Asymmetric](\"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2024\/09\/asymmetric-encryption.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"Asymmetric](\"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2024\/09\/enc-code-1.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"Asymmetric](\"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2024\/09\/enc-code-2.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"Asymmetric](\"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2024\/09\/enc-code-3.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"Asymmetric](\"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2024\/09\/enc-code-4.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"Asymmetric](\"https:\/\/www.tothenew.com\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2024\/09\/enc-code-5.png\")
<\/p>\n