312-50V10 · Question #387
Which of the following can take an arbitrary length of input and produce a message digest output of 160 bit?
The correct answer is A. SHA-1. SHA-1 is a cryptographic hash function that accepts input of any length and produces a fixed 160-bit (20-byte) message digest.
Question
Which of the following can take an arbitrary length of input and produce a message digest output of 160 bit?
Options
- ASHA-1
- BMD5
- CHAVAL
- DMD4
How the community answered
(39 responses)- A92% (36)
- B3% (1)
- D5% (2)
Why each option
SHA-1 is a cryptographic hash function that accepts input of any length and produces a fixed 160-bit (20-byte) message digest.
SHA-1 (Secure Hash Algorithm 1) was designed by the NSA and published by NIST, and it specifically produces a 160-bit hash output regardless of input size. This distinguishes it from other common hash functions and was a defining characteristic before it was deprecated for collision vulnerabilities.
MD5 produces a 128-bit message digest, not 160-bit.
HAVAL is a variable-length hash function that can produce digests of 128, 160, 192, 224, or 256 bits, so it is not exclusively 160-bit.
MD4 produces a 128-bit message digest, not 160-bit.
Concept tested: SHA-1 hash function output length
Source: https://csrc.nist.gov/publications/detail/fips/180/4/final
Topics
Community Discussion
No community discussion yet for this question.