210-250 · Question #3
Which hashing algorithm is the least secure?
The correct answer is A. MD5. MD5 is the least secure hashing algorithm among the options because it is vulnerable to collision attacks and has been deprecated for cryptographic use. SHA-2 and SHA-3 provide significantly stronger security guarantees.
Question
Which hashing algorithm is the least secure?
Options
- AMD5
- BRC4
- CSHA-3
- DSHA-2
How the community answered
(53 responses)- A91% (48)
- B2% (1)
- C4% (2)
- D4% (2)
Why each option
MD5 is the least secure hashing algorithm among the options because it is vulnerable to collision attacks and has been deprecated for cryptographic use. SHA-2 and SHA-3 provide significantly stronger security guarantees.
MD5 produces only a 128-bit digest and has well-documented collision vulnerabilities, meaning two different inputs can be engineered to produce the same hash output. NIST has deprecated MD5 for all cryptographic applications due to these weaknesses. In contrast, SHA-2 and SHA-3 offer larger digest sizes and far greater collision resistance.
RC4 is a stream cipher used for encryption, not a hashing algorithm, so it is not a valid candidate for comparison in the context of hash function security.
SHA-3 is the most recently standardized hashing algorithm by NIST and provides strong collision resistance across multiple digest sizes (224, 256, 384, 512 bits).
SHA-2 (including SHA-256 and SHA-512) is significantly more secure than MD5 and remains widely trusted and in active use for digital signatures and certificates.
Concept tested: Hashing algorithm security comparison and MD5 weaknesses
Source: https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/SpecialPublications/NIST.SP.800-107r1.pdf
Topics
Community Discussion
No community discussion yet for this question.