Roman Semiokhin is a serial entrepreneur with extensive experience in the technology industry. This article will look at moves by US Homeland Security officials to make migration to post-quantum cryptography a top priority. The attached PDF takes a closer look at what cryptography is, exploring its key benefits in cybersecurity.
On 26th September 2023, the Quantum World Congress was held in Virginia in the United States, bringing together tech experts and policymakers from all over the world to discuss federal efforts to protect digital networks against future attacks in anticipation of the eventual development of a fault-tolerant quantum computer.
Florence Lewine works for the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Cyber, Infrastructure, Risk and Resilience as a policy advisor. Speaking at the Quantum World Conference in Virginia, she explained that PQC migration should begin by evaluating what systems are most vulnerable to consequential cyberattacks. Ms Lewine indicated that the Department of Homeland Security’s current focus was on the inventory, identification and prioritisation of vulnerable systems. It therefore follows that organisations need to identify which systems are at highest risk to help prepare for new algorithms.
Meanwhile in Europe, in July 2023 the European Policy Commission published its Quantum Cybersecurity for Europe report, assessing quantum readiness across EU countries. The document proved to be an uncomfortable read for many security professionals, bringing important questions to the fore. The attached infographic provides an overview of key cybercrime trends in 2023.
Likened to the global threat posed by climate change or the nuclear arms race in that they are all existential threats capable of irrevocably changing the geopolitical and international landscape, the quantum threat has one key distinction. Unlike the nuclear arms race, it is not merely a race to build capability – there is also a race to protect the world against its impact.
Experts warn that quantum computers will be cryptographically superior to contemporary encryption and classical computers, boasting the ability to crack encryption algorithms that currently protect everything from online banking to critical infrastructure.
Speaking at the Quantum World Congress, Lily Chen – lead mathematician at the National Institute of Standards and Technology – highlighted the need for public key encryption to start soon, pointing out that cryptography has been the cornerstone for cybersecurity. Florence Lewine agreed that looking at vulnerabilities in supply chains in particular could help entities gauge where they need to modernise their systems. The embedded video provides an overview of some of the biggest cybersecurity threats in 2023.
