Generate cryptographic hashes from text or files.
A cryptographic hash function takes input data and produces a fixed-size string of characters. The same input always produces the same hash, but even a tiny change in input produces a completely different hash. Hashes are used for password storage, data integrity verification, and digital signatures. SHA-256 is the most widely recommended algorithm for security applications, while MD5 and SHA-1 are considered cryptographically broken for security purposes.