Week 2 Discussion 1

Hashing Techniques
Your labs and readings this week focus on applying common cryptography and hashing techniques to important data to ensure confidentiality and integrity. These techniques are important, as they ensure safeguarding a company’s information and the accuracy of the data. 

In a few sentences, describe the difference between an MD5 hashing algorithm and an SHA1 hashing algorithm, outlining the strengths and weaknesses of each hashing algorithm.  Describe a scenario or instance when MD5 and SHA1 would be best suitable to use to secure data. Researching your own PC’s operating system, are there any tools built in to verify MD5 or SHA1 checksums of downloaded software?  Can you recommend a website as a potential useful resource that show a user how to verify an MD5 checksum? Share with your classmates, and provide links to any useful resource you find. 

After reading a few of your classmate’s postings, reply to the ones from which you learned something new, or to which you have something to add. Remember to get in early and post often. 
Additional post option: What would happen if you downloaded new software, and confirmed that the MD5 value does not match the site? What steps would you take to resolve this issue?