Hashing transforms data into a fixed-length cryptographic fingerprint that ensures integrity and authenticity. Every block in a blockchain contains its own hash and the previous block’s hash, forming ...

Hashing is a one-way cryptographic function while encryption is designed to work both ways. Encryption algorithms take input and a secret key and generate a random looking output called a ciphertext.

Phil Goldstein is a former web editor of the CDW family of tech magazines and a veteran technology journalist. He lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife and their animals: a dog named Brenna, and ...