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What is collision onto a hash value? Why is it very unlikely?

User Elsalex
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Final answer:

In physics, collision onto a hash value refers to the situation where two different inputs produce the same hash value when inserted into a hash function. This is very unlikely because hash functions are designed to minimize collisions.

Step-by-step explanation:

In physics, collision onto a hash value refers to the situation where two different inputs produce the same hash value when inserted into a hash function. This is very unlikely because hash functions are designed to minimize collisions. Hash functions use algorithms that spread the inputs evenly across a large range of hash values, making it difficult for two different inputs to produce the same output.

An example of a hash function is the SHA-256 algorithm, which produces a 256-bit hash value for any input. The likelihood of a collision occurring in a hash function like SHA-256 is extremely low due to the large number of possible hash values.

User James Berkenbile
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