Prospects of Quantum Key Distriubtion: Making Data Communication Secure for the Future
Code:
D17
Primary project information
Lead:
Austrian Institue of Technology, ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute)
Type of activity:
Foresight project
Date conducted:
2008-2010
Date of Publication:
May 2011
Duration:
2 YEARS
Summary:
The application of the highest information-theoretically secure cryptographic primitives for securing data transmission was long considered unfeasible because of a missing primitive for the distribution of the necessary cryptographic keys between sender and receiver ensuring a comparable level of security. With quantum key distribution (QKD), a technology has been invented that enables the generation and distribution of appropriate cryptographic. ETSI started a standardisation initiative including foresight elements looking into the next ten years of QKD applications.
Financed by:
European Commission, DG Infso, ETSI
Budget:
250,000 EURO
Research area/market/industry/sector:
Quantum Key Distribution, Communication
Main report (full title):
Quantum Key Distribution;
Use Cases http://www.etsi.org/deliver/etsi_gs/QKD/001_099/002/01.01.01_60/gs_QKD002v010101p.pdf
Use Cases http://www.etsi.org/deliver/etsi_gs/QKD/001_099/002/01.01.01_60/gs_QKD002v010101p.pdf
GRAND CHALLENGES
Economic Challenges:
More and more businesses see the need to increase the security and reliability of their networks and have to prove this to their custormers
Economic Challenges Shortlist:
business needs to increase security and reliability of data transfer and data storage systems
Societal Challenges:
increasing security breaches and information leaks in all societal subsystems
Societal Challenges Shortlist:
deal with growing threat of security breaches and information leaks in all societal subsystems
Technical Challenges:
secure communication networks - ultra-secure encryption of sensitive data sent by banks, hospitals and government organisations; need for long-term security of data; secure confidentiality and autheticity in communication
Technical Challenges Shortlist:
ensure secure communication networks; assure security of sensitive data sent by banks, hospitals and government organisations; long-term security of data; secure confidentiality and autheticity in communication
Cross-cutting Challenges:
(Societal - technical) Participation in the information society means becoming more and more dependent on data exchange via electronic communication networks; relying on their proper guarding of communication confidentially, integrity, and property of origin and destination
Cross-cutting Challenges Shortlist:
growing dependence on data exchange via electronic communcation networks; need to rely on proper guarding electronic communication networks: confidentiality, integrity and property of origin and destination
Summary of relevant aspects
Connecting fields:
information technologies, data security
Background information:
Of all quantum technologies quantum cryptography – or more precisely quantum key distribution – is nearest to market application, say market analysts. Some companies already offer off-the-shelf market products, which have proven their reliability in several demon-stration projects and field tests. In the fall of 2007, the Geneva government used the technology provided by the Geneva-based start-up Id Quantique to secure the network processing voting results. Nuclear Research (CERN), University of Geneva (UNIGE) and the Engineering School of Geneva (HE-PIA) has been designed and deployed to demonstrate the reliability and robustness of QKD technology for encryption over metropolitan area networks (MAN; http://www.swissquantum.com/). The first QKD network in Japan was launched in October 2010 as a live demonstration of an operational quantum key distribution network in the Tokyo metropolitan area.
Keywords:
Geographic scope: