Salting
Salting is the practice of adding random data to a password before hashing to make password attacks significantly more difficult.
“A cryptographic technique that adds random data (salt) to the user data prior to hashing.”
(Definition reproduced from the ISTQB Glossary. Copyright belongs to ISTQB.)
View the complete ISTQB GlossaryWhat is Salting?
A unique salt ensures that identical passwords produce different hash values, reducing the effectiveness of rainbow table and precomputed attacks.
Random value: Each password receives a unique salt.
Password protection: Makes stored password hashes more secure.
Works with hashing: Salts are added before the password is hashed.
Real World Example
A regulated product team is preparing a release where Salting appears in reviews, test design conversations, or defect triage rather than as an isolated glossary word.
The risk is that the team treats Salting as interchangeable with nearby ISTQB terms. That makes test scope blurry and can lead to weak evidence for the release decision.
The tester anchors the discussion in the official definition, asks where the concept appears in the product, and designs examples that show the difference between Salting and similar ideas.
The page becomes useful in practice because Salting is connected to a specific testing decision, not memorized as a detached definition.
Practice Questions
Question 1
Which statement BEST describes Salting in the context of ISTQB terminology?
Question 2
A tester needs to explain Salting to a non‑technical stakeholder. Which approach is MOST appropriate?
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