Keccak

What Is Keccak?

Keccak, which is pronounced "ketchak," is a flexible cryptographic function created by Guido Bertoni, Joan Daemen, Michaël Peeters, and Gilles Van Assche. While Keccak has various potential applications, it is most notably recognized as a hash function that offers heightened security compared to older hash algorithms such as SHA-1 and SHA-2.

What Is SHA?

The acronym SHA stands for Secure Hash Algorithm and represents a series of cryptographic hash functions developed by the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Both SHA-1 and SHA-2 were created by the US National Security Agency (NSA) and share a similar structure. Despite Keccak having the same output size (hash lengths) as SHA-2, its operational mechanism differs significantly. Nonetheless, Keccak is considered part of the SHA family and is commonly known as SHA-3.

In summary, theoretical attacks on SHA-1 were disclosed in 2004, leading to the declaration of SHA-2 as the new standard hash function by NIST in 2011. The slow migration from SHA-1 to SHA-2 was followed by a successful SHA-1 collision attack in 2017, rendering SHA-1 insecure and discouraged for use. Keccak, known as SHA-3, was developed to address potential flaws in SHA-1 and SHA-2, winning a competition held by NIST in 2012 and becoming the newest member of the SHA family. Its innovative structure and reliance on sponge functions contributed to its selection. While SHA-2 remains widely used and secure, the possible future adoption of SHA-3 may be influenced by its resilience to attacks. Additionally, the ongoing evolution of cryptography may lead to the development of new cryptographic hash algorithms in the years to come.