hashingto
Hashing to is a general cryptographic technique for deterministically mapping data of arbitrary length to a fixed-size element in a mathematical structure, such as a finite field or an elliptic curve group. The objective is to produce outputs that are uniformly distributed and unpredictable, enabling secure construction of cryptographic primitives that require a valid group element derived from arbitrary input.
Two common destinations are: map to a finite field element, then to a curve point, or directly
Standards and protocols: The CFRG has developed standardized hash-to-curve and hash-to-field constructions to ensure uniformity, security
Applications and considerations: Hashing to is used in digital signatures, cryptographic key exchange, and zero-knowledge proofs