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> IANA cryptography expert. Is this feasible in the way the author predicts? Could SHA256 be cracked quickly, a la MD5? My gut is that it won't be able to, but I can't back up my argument.

IANA cryptography expert either, but my understanding is that the biggest threat to SHA is quantum computing.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grover%27s_algorithm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_computer




I am not an expert either, but I can't see what Grover's algorithm has to do with quantum computers. When you look at the known algorithms for them, quantum computers seem pretty useless... It's not hashes that fear quantum computers but existing public key crypto.


Inverting a function in O(N^0.5) is useless?


Double the hash length (use SHA-512 rather than SHA-256) and you're done, no?




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