Introduction to Quantum Cryptography – Everything You Need to Know

Sudarshan M

@Sum

Private KeyPublic KeyQuantum ComputingQuantum Cryptography

To explain what I mean by Quantum Cryptography, I would first dive into what Quantum Computing is. Then, I could say what “Expert” websites say: Quantum computers use the fundamentals of quantum mechanics to speed up the process of solving complex computations. As a result, they can process massive and complex datasets more efficiently than classical computers. But that sounds like a whole lot of gibberish and no talk.

So, let’s take a bold step and try to break down what all that gibberish means.

What is Quantum Computing?

Quantum computers could spur the development of scientific breakthroughs, medications to save lives, machine learning methods to diagnose illnesses sooner, materials to make more efficient devices and structures, financial strategies to live well in retirement, and algorithms to direct resources such as ambulances quickly. Quantum computing is poised to upend entire industries, from telecommunications and cybersecurity to advanced manufacturing, finance, medicine, and beyond.

In the simplest sense, a Quantum Computer is a computational device that uses Quantum mechanics’ fundamental laws. Unlike “classical” computers built ground up based on the classical laws of physics, a Quantum Computer is built using Quantum Mechanics principles, which, in theory, allows computation to be exponentially faster than what could be achieved by computers today.

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One of the easy ways to understand the immense complexity and potential of Quantum Computing was IBM’s spearhead of the Quantum Revolution. IBM put forward a blog post by their writer Jan Lillelund, who simplified the concept so that even kids can try to understand Quantum Computing.

Jan explains, “[Quantum Computing] will, for sure, solve complex problems in the future that even classical super-computers will never be able to. In life sciences, supply chain management, chemistry research, and much more ………… even our kids (need to) get familiar with quantum computing.” He adds later, “If more people get excited about the fascinating opportunities the technology offers, it will hopefully help to push the development of quantum computing to new heights in the future.”

Reliance on Modern Cryptography

Cryptography encrypts data or converts plain text into scrambled text so that only someone with the right “key” can read it. For millennia, cryptographic practices have been used to code and decode communication, thus ensuring privacy and secrecy. However, as the old cryptographic methods are broken, new ones take their place, being harder to solve and intercept.

With the advent of the Internet and the exponential increase in computing capacity, cryptographic algorithms that use encryption much more computationally intensive than any single computer can handle have been developed.

Today, Cryptography is an indispensable tool to protect the information in computing systems. It is used everywhere and by billions of people worldwide daily. It is used to protect data at rest and data in motion. Every piece of hardware or software you use today uses some form of modern encryption that is unbreakable.

Unbreakable until there comes an exponentially better infrastructure for computing as we know it today.

Will Quantum Computing Break Security as We Know It?

All around the world, Cybersecurity researchers, experts, and analysts are rightly worried that a new type of computing infrastructure – Quantum Computing, could break most modern cryptography, the backbone of all financial, economic, corporate, and public data.

Think how efficient it would be if your phone were ten times faster tomorrow than it is today. You would be able to build, design, and play much faster. What if your mining rig has the highest configuration and is 20 times faster in finding hashes? You would easily find blocks and get the rewards while others wait around. With Quantum Computing, this is ten to a whole new level.

If we design a Quantum computer to perform a particular task and that task only, it is estimated that we could see a computing reduction time from 10,000 years to a mere 3 minutes. If put to the study, it would break any algorithm or encryption feasible to break in minutes.

This existential problem poses a massive threat to the world of blockchain and cryptocurrency. All blockchains are built of hashing algorithms and public-private key encryption. These encryptions could be broken if Quantum Computers are scalable and put to everyday use. If quantum computers become real, then someone may be able to reverse blockchain encryption in the future.

Introducing Quantum Cryptography

Quantum cryptography is the science of exploiting quantum mechanical properties to perform cryptographic tasks. Quantum cryptography, by extension, uses the principles of quantum mechanics to encrypt data and transmit it in a way that cannot be hacked. The best-known example of quantum cryptography is a quantum key distribution, which offers an information-theoretically secure solution to the key exchange problem.

Quantum cryptography, also called quantum encryption, applies principles of quantum mechanics to encrypt messages in a way that no one outside of the intended recipient ever reads. It takes advantage of quantum’s multiple states and its “no change theory.” The “No change theory” means encrypted communication cannot be unknowingly interrupted. This removes the drawbacks of classical encryption mechanisms that mainly depend on the probability of breaking particular encryption.

It is to be noted that quantum computing does not threaten all flavors of cryptographic algorithms. Some algorithm families, like asymmetric cryptography (AES, 3DES), are unlikely to be broken. But others, like the SHA series, RSA, etc., can be easily cracked open.

What the Future Holds

Quantum Cryptography is the nerd’s answer to the threats posed by the advent of Quantum Computing. We discussed in length in the previous article how Quantum Computers are the next step toward technological maturity. Compared to “Classical” computing techniques, Quantum Computers are several orders of magnitude more efficient at specific tasks.

Since Quantum Computing is not generalized and can only perform tasks efficiently if specific, they pose a massive threat to modern security. For example, we know today’s Cryptographic encryption practices are highly secure and have been used for several decades, guarding the gates. But with Quantum Computers, standard encryptions such as the SHA series, RSA, etc., used for decades could be broken quite trivially.

The World of Blockchain is no less in danger, as all processes that ensure smooth functioning involve some other security firms.

Blockchain and its Resistance to Quantum Computing

Blockchains, including bitcoin runs, use highly advanced encryption, which results in permanent, immutable records. The encryption is so strong that there is simply no way anyone using a classical computer can break it.

One such case is the public-private key encryption that most cryptocurrencies use. The private key would be the primary attack point for any future quantum computer. A Private key is usually a set of alphanumeric codes that hold users’ coins and permits them to spend. If that is cracked, it becomes easy to get ahold of those funds. The private key performs a function akin to a password: Every time you use a Bitcoin wallet or send funds from a Bitcoin address.

To save the blockchain from getting attacked by anyone who has a Quantum Computer, one has to develop ways that, firstly, do not allow for detection and, secondly, are Quantum resistant in the first place.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies and their native blockchains will have to adopt more advanced encryption. “Quantum-proof” blockchains in the future will be a necessity once Quantum Computers become scalable and cheaper. While the quantum computing threat should not keep crypto enthusiasts up at night, it is worth keeping an eye on the medium to long term.

Plan B is ready

Post-quantum cryptography refers to cryptographic algorithms (usually public-key algorithms) that are thought to be secure against an attack by a quantum computer. Unfortunately, the need for unbreakable, quantum-resistant encryption stares us in the face. With the development of quantum computers looming on the horizon, encrypted data integrity is at risk now. Fortunately, through QKD, quantum cryptography offers the solution we need to safeguard our information well into the future, all based on quantum mechanics’ complex principles.

The advancement of quantum computing means that encryption, in general, will have to evolve, including all encryption technologies, like blockchains. Several projects, such as “Quantum Resistant Ledger” (QRL), are being designed by teams working on preemptive solutions to quantum attacks.

“Quantum computers are unlikely to crack symmetric methods (AES, 3DES, etc.) but are likely to crack public methods, such as ECC and RSA,” says Bill Buchanan. Bill is a Quantum Clouting expert and a professor in the School of Computing at Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland.

Quantum cryptography is the only known method for transmitting a secret key over a distance that is secure in principle and based on the laws of physics. Unfortunately, current methods for communicating private keys are all based on unproven mathematical assumptions. These same methods also risk becoming cracked in the future, compromising today’s encrypted transmissions retroactively. This matters very much if you care about long-term security.

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Some Methods of Quantum Resistance

Longer Encryption Keys

Today’s encryption practices are built on keys that would take classical computers thousands of years to break. This makes attacks extremely improbable. But with a Quantum Computer, they could be easily broken, as we saw previously. One way of ensuring resistance could be to make encryption keys longer, into a length that even Quantum computers would not be able to crack. This has several repercussions, such as bigger storage size and better processing, but that would be a problem we must solve if we need to stay safe.

Avoiding Public Key Detection

A private key gives access to a wallet and allows it to store and spend funds securely. To crack a private key of any particular wallet, one would have to get a hold of the public key and reverse engineer it to get the private key. If we could devise ways to avoid the detection of public keys and use alternative methods of transferring funds, we would cut the problem at its core.

Symmetric rather than Asymmetric

With symmetric encryption, messages are encrypted and decrypted using the same key. That makes symmetric encryption less suitable for public communication but significantly harder to break. In addition, symmetric encryption uses photons of light to verify communication between two parties. This makes them incredibly precise and unfalsifiable, but at the same time, expensive and currently non-scalable. We must cross this hurdle, a place to innovate if we need a genuinely resistant encryption process.

A Quantum Resistant Hard Fork

A Quantum Resistant Hard Fork is when a blockchain community realizes that scalable Quantum Computers are on the horizon and collectively decides to hard fork the blockchain. The Hard fork will change the default encryption on the blockchain with newer quantum-resistant ones. These mechanisms will have longer encryption keys, ensure the public keys are hard to detect and cement all the previous system’s loopholes.

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Given Quantum Computers’ advancement, we could expect a wave of Quantum Resistant Hard forks to follow in the coming decade.