Mask generation function: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 17:53, 24 October 2018

Revision as of 06:36, 3 April 2019

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{{Use American English|date = April 2019}}

{{Short description|cryptographic tool}}

A '''mask generation function''' ('''MGF''') is a cryptographic primitive similar to a [[cryptographic hash function]] except that while a hash function's output is a fixed size, a MGF supports output of a variable length. In this respect, a MGF can be viewed as a single-use [[sponge function]]: it can absorb any length of input and process it to produce any length of output. Mask generation functions are completely deterministic: for any given input and desired output length the output is always the same.