Hash function

A hash function is like a special machine that takes something and turns it into a secret code. Imagine you have a toy car, and you want to keep it safe in a box. You could put a lock on the box, and keeping the key would keep it safe, right? But what if someone found the key? They could unlock the box and take your toy car.

So, instead of using a key, you could use a special machine to change your toy car into a secret code. It would change the shape, color, and size of your toy car so that nobody could recognize it. Then, you could put the secret code in a box and keep it safe, knowing that nobody would be able to figure out what was inside.

That’s kind of like what a hash function does. It takes in a piece of data, like a password or a message, and scrambles it up so that nobody can read it. Then, it spits out the scrambled version as a different set of letters and numbers that we call a hash. And just like your toy car, nobody can figure out what your password or message was just by looking at the hash.

This is really helpful when we need to keep data safe. For example, when you create an online account with a password, the website doesn’t keep your actual password. Instead, it uses a hash function to turn your password into a secret code and keeps that code. Then, when you log in, it uses the hash function again to compare the code you type in with the code it has stored. If they match, you get logged in!

And the best part is, if someone tries to hack into the website and steal the code, they won’t be able to figure out your password, because it’s just a mess of scrambled letters and numbers that nobody can read! So, a hash function is like a secret code machine that helps keep our information safe.