What typically happens if data is altered after being hashed?

When data is hashed, it produces a fixed-size string of characters that is unique to that specific input. This process utilizes a hashing algorithm, which ensures that even the smallest change in the original data will result in a significantly different hash value. Hence, if the data is altered after being hashed, the hash value changes. This property is critical for data integrity verification; it allows users to check if the data has been modified by comparing the newly computed hash value with the original one. If they are different, it is evident that the data has been altered. This mechanism is widely used in security applications such as digital signatures and data integrity checks.