Message Integrity Verification using Message Digest

Message integrity refers to verifying that the message or data has not been altered or tampered with during transmission or storage. Message digest is a technique that is widely used for this purpose. It involves generating a unique fixed-length string of characters (also known as a hash value or checksum) from the original message using a mathematical algorithm. This hash value is then attached to the message or transmitted separately to the recipient.

Steps involved in Message Digest Verification:

1. Generating the Hash Value
- Apply a mathematical algorithm to the original message to generate a hash value.
- The hash value is a fixed-length string of characters that uniquely represents the message.

2. Sending the Hash Value
- Attach the hash value to the message or transmit it separately to the recipient.

3. Verification of Message Digest
- The recipient applies the same mathematical algorithm to the received message to generate a hash value.
- The generated hash value is compared with the received hash value.
- If both values are the same, then the message integrity is verified.

Advantages of Message Digest Verification:

- It ensures that the message has not been altered or tampered with during transmission or storage.
- It provides a quick and easy way to verify the integrity of a message without having to compare the entire message.
- It is widely used in digital signatures, secure communication protocols, and other security applications.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, message digest is a technique used for verifying the integrity of a message by generating a unique fixed-length string of characters from the original message using a mathematical algorithm. This hash value is then attached to the message or transmitted separately to the recipient. The recipient applies the same algorithm to the received message to generate a hash value and compares it with the received hash value. If both values match, then the message integrity is verified.