md5 hashing function
MD5 hash mapping unique input (128bit) to unique output(128bit)?
Will the md5 hash function always return a unique hash, given that input is unique each time and 128 or less bits. For example, will all numbers (0->9999999999) return a unique md5 hash or do they lap over at some points ? I dont just want a yes / no, but some proof / website links please.
The MD5 algorithm will theoretically create collisions for two unique inputs, but I would suspect that at 128 bits, the probability of it would be low.
The Wikipedia entry for MD5 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Md5#Vulnerability suggests collisions are easily generated, but it fails to state that the only practical way to collide two hashes is to know the same prefix, which is unlikely in the case of passwords; although one could dictionary / brute force attack a dataset of hashes in an effort to create collisions and thus, crack the hash.
That’s probably more work than many crackers would care to invest.
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