What is the difference between MD5 and SHA-256?

What is the difference between MD5 and SHA-256?

MD5 and SHA-256 are both cryptographic hash functions, but they differ in security and output size. MD5 produces a 128-bit hash, while SHA-256 produces a 256-bit hash, making SHA-256 more secure against collisions.

Why is SHA-256 considered more secure than MD5?

SHA-256 is more secure because it has a larger output size, which makes it harder to find two different inputs that produce the same hash (collision). Additionally, SHA-256 uses a more complex algorithm, making it resistant to various attack methods.

Are there any practical applications where I should use SHA-256 instead of MD5?

Yes, you should use SHA-256 for applications requiring strong security, such as digital signatures, certificate generation, and blockchain technology. MD5 is generally not recommended for security-sensitive applications.

Can you give me an example of how to implement both in Python?

Sure! In Python, you can use the hashlib library. For MD5: hashlib.md5(b'your_string').hexdigest(). For SHA-256: hashlib.sha256(b'your_string').hexdigest().