SK Telecom begins work on quantum cryptosystems
SK Telecom and Nokia have developed a prototype of a quantum cryptographic system, which was demonstrated on Monday at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. With this joint project, companies are hoping to push telecom operators and server equipment manufacturers to work on next-generation secure networks.
/ photo ColossusCloud CC0
Quantum cryptography is associated with the transfer of cryptographic keys over fiber optic networks. At the same time, the principles of operation of such networks make it possible to determine whether there was an attempt to “listen” to the channel. Interception of quantum particles changes their state, so the parties can easily tell if there was an outside interference.
')
During a demonstration in Barcelona, ​​SK Telecom generated quantum keys and transferred them to the Nokia 1830 fiber optic switch to encrypt data.
"SK Telecom began working on its own quantum cryptographic technology in 2011," said Cho Jeong-Sik, manager of quantum engineering at the company. “But now we have decided to concentrate on the technology of quantum key distribution and work with other manufacturers of network hardware.”
In order to expand the applicability of the product and improve compatibility with other devices, SK and Deutche Telekom even created a group called the Quantum Alliance. Thus, organizations invite other network operators and hardware manufacturers to cooperate in order to define standards for working with quantum encryption systems.
Companies are hoping that standards will simplify the work of security vendors in creating commercial versions of technology. After determining the initial specification, alliance members will begin to implement tools for developers to further accelerate the adaptation of technology.
However, they will have to overcome a couple of obstacles before the technology becomes widespread. One of the main difficulties remains geographical restrictions. Although data encrypted with cryptographic keys can be transmitted over existing networks, the keys themselves must be distributed over an unbroken fiber-optic cable — switches and amplifiers will create the appearance that the data has been intercepted.
This fact limits the transfer of quantum keys to 80 kilometers - this is sufficient if the transmission is carried out within the same city, however, when broadcasting at the national or international level, this approach is not suitable.
Representatives of SK Telecom say that now the company is developing a device called a “trusted host”, which will increase the distance for handing over keys, but it will appear on the market not earlier than the end of 2017.
PS And here are some more materials from the IaaS provider blog 1cloud:
/ photo ColossusCloud CC0Quantum cryptography is associated with the transfer of cryptographic keys over fiber optic networks. At the same time, the principles of operation of such networks make it possible to determine whether there was an attempt to “listen” to the channel. Interception of quantum particles changes their state, so the parties can easily tell if there was an outside interference.
')
During a demonstration in Barcelona, ​​SK Telecom generated quantum keys and transferred them to the Nokia 1830 fiber optic switch to encrypt data.
"SK Telecom began working on its own quantum cryptographic technology in 2011," said Cho Jeong-Sik, manager of quantum engineering at the company. “But now we have decided to concentrate on the technology of quantum key distribution and work with other manufacturers of network hardware.”
In order to expand the applicability of the product and improve compatibility with other devices, SK and Deutche Telekom even created a group called the Quantum Alliance. Thus, organizations invite other network operators and hardware manufacturers to cooperate in order to define standards for working with quantum encryption systems.
Companies are hoping that standards will simplify the work of security vendors in creating commercial versions of technology. After determining the initial specification, alliance members will begin to implement tools for developers to further accelerate the adaptation of technology.
However, they will have to overcome a couple of obstacles before the technology becomes widespread. One of the main difficulties remains geographical restrictions. Although data encrypted with cryptographic keys can be transmitted over existing networks, the keys themselves must be distributed over an unbroken fiber-optic cable — switches and amplifiers will create the appearance that the data has been intercepted.
This fact limits the transfer of quantum keys to 80 kilometers - this is sufficient if the transmission is carried out within the same city, however, when broadcasting at the national or international level, this approach is not suitable.
Representatives of SK Telecom say that now the company is developing a device called a “trusted host”, which will increase the distance for handing over keys, but it will appear on the market not earlier than the end of 2017.
PS And here are some more materials from the IaaS provider blog 1cloud:
- Personal experience: How we automated work with DNS records in the hosting panel
- The nuances of the agreement on the level of services provided
- How to find out what an SSL certificate consists of?
- Cloud Security Trends
- A bit about VPN: A brief overview of software implementations
- SSL certificate chains
- How to secure a Linux system: 10 tips
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/322824/
All Articles