Answer Description

A checksum is a sequence of numbers generated by a checksum algorithm (such as check digits and parity bits) used to validate the integrity of data by comparing a calculated checksum to a previously calculated checksum value. Matching values indicate that the data has not been changed.

Wikipedia

A checksum is a small-sized block of data derived from another block of digital data for the purpose of detecting errors that may have been introduced during its transmission or storage. By themselves, checksums are often used to verify data integrity but are not relied upon to verify data authenticity.The procedure which generates this checksum is called a checksum function or checksum algorithm. Depending on its design goals, a good checksum algorithm usually outputs a significantly different value, even for small changes made to the input. This is especially true of cryptographic hash functions, which may be used to detect many data corruption errors and verify overall data integrity; if the computed checksum for the current data input matches the stored value of a previously computed checksum, there is a very high probability the data has not been accidentally altered or corrupted. Checksum functions are related to hash functions, fingerprints, randomization functions, and cryptographic hash functions. However, each of those concepts has different applications and therefore different design goals. For instance, a function returning the start of a string can provide a hash appropriate for some applications but will never be a suitable checksum. Checksums are used as cryptographic primitives in larger authentication algorithms. For cryptographic systems with these two specific design goals, see HMAC. Check digits and parity bits are special cases of checksums, appropriate for small blocks of data (such as Social Security numbers, bank account numbers, computer words, single bytes, etc.). Some error-correcting codes are based