Base64
Updated: 09/12/2023 by Computer Hope
Base64 is encoding that allows files or data to be embedded in media that otherwise does not allow certain data. For example, binary files, such as images, often contain bytes that interrupt an e-mail transmission, so attachments are often base64-encoded, using MIME (Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions), for a friendlier format.
Th base64 format only contains the ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) characters 'A' through 'Z' (upper and lowercase), digits '0' through '9', and symbols '+', '/', and '=' for padding. This adds up to 64 different values, hence the name base64. Base64 encoded data must be decoded for the computer to understand the original data.