Encoding and Data Representation Questions

Addresses correct handling of encodings and binary representations in cryptographic contexts. Candidates should be familiar with hexadecimal and base sixty four encodings, binary blobs versus textual formats, character encodings such as UTF eight, canonicalization, padding schemes, endianness and byte order, and common serialization formats that carry cryptographic material. Interviewers probe for understanding of pitfalls such as ambiguous encodings, improper canonicalization breaking signature verification, padding related oracle risks, and safe parsing and conversion strategies to avoid truncation and integer overflow.