(ISC)2 Certified in Cybersecurity Practice Exam

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Which hashing algorithm offers the most security against pre-image attacks?

SHA-1
SHA-2
RIPEMD-160
All of the above

The correct answer is: SHA-2

SHA-2 is known for providing a higher level of security against pre-image attacks compared to the other hashing algorithms listed. Pre-image attacks involve finding an input that hashes to a specific output, and a secure hashing algorithm should make this computationally infeasible. SHA-2, which includes SHA-256 and SHA-512 among others, utilizes a larger hash size and more complex algorithms compared to SHA-1 and RIPEMD-160. The increased bit length of SHA-2 makes it significantly harder for attackers to create a pre-image. SHA-1, while historically popular, has known vulnerabilities, including successful attacks that have demonstrated its weaknesses against pre-image and collision attacks. RIPEMD-160, though considered secure at the time of its design, does not reach the same security levels as SHA-2 in modern contexts where advanced computational power can be manipulated for such attacks. Thus, SHA-2 stands out as the best option when considering protection against pre-image attacks, making it the answer to this question.