SHAbased

SHAbased is a term used to describe systems, protocols, or components that rely on the Secure Hash Algorithm family for cryptographic hashing. In practice, SHAbased designs use these hash functions to provide data integrity, digital signatures, and authentication mechanisms such as message digests, certificate signing, and input authentication.

The SHA family was developed under the oversight of the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Early variants included SHA-1, which has been deprecated due to demonstrated collision weaknesses. The successor SHA-2 family, including SHA-256 and SHA-512, offers stronger security and remains in widespread use. A later standard, SHA-3, introduced in 2015, is built on a different internal construction (Keccak) and provides an alternative option in contexts where SHA-2 might be unsuitable or viewed as an additional defense-in-depth measure.

SHAbased implementations appear in a range of security-critical technologies, including digital certificates and TLS/SSL handshakes, code signing, and blockchain-related systems that rely on hash outputs for integrity, non-repudiation, or addressing schemes. In password storage, SHAbased hashing is typically combined with salts and deliberately slow key-stretching techniques (such as PBKDF2, bcrypt, or Argon2) to mitigate brute-force attempts.

Security considerations for SHAbased systems emphasize using current, strong variants (preferably SHA-2 or SHA-3), applying proper configurations, and avoiding deprecated algorithms like SHA-1. Proper use includes salting, iteration, and appropriate integration with signing and authentication schemes to maintain cryptographic strength.

See also: SHA, SHA-1, SHA-2, SHA-3, HMAC, cryptographic hash function.