In cybersecurity, a digest refers to a fixed-size cryptographic hash value generated from a larger set of data using a hash function. The digest acts as a unique digital fingerprint for the original data. Even a small change in the input data will result in a completely different digest, making it useful for verifying data integrity and authenticity. Digests are commonly used in digital signatures, message authentication codes, and to ensure files have not been tampered with during transmission or storage. Popular hash functions for generating digests include SHA-256 and MD5.