NIST of a future quantum computer for the security of digital information.
The announcement follows a six-year effort to devise and then test encryption methods to significantly increase the security of digital information, the agency said.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has selected four encryption algorithms designed to withstand hacking by a future quantum computer and protect digital information. This first group of encryption tools will become part of post-quantum cryptography standard , which is expected to be finalized in about two years.
The algorithms are designed with two main goals in mind for when encryption is typically used: General encryption, which is used to protect information exchanged over a public network, and digital signatures, which are used for authentication. NIST said all four algorithms were created by experts collaborating from multiple countries and institutions.
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For general encryption: Used when accessing secure websites, NIST has chosen the CRYSTALS-Kyber. Among its advantages are the relatively small encryption keys that can be easily exchanged between two people, as well as its speed of operation.
For digital signatures: Often used to verify identities during a digital transaction or to remotely sign a document, NIST has selected the three algorithms CRYSTALS-Dilithium, FALCON , and SPHINCS+. Reviewers cited the high performance of the first two, and NIST recommends CRYSTALS-Dilithium as the primary algorithm, with FALCON for applications that require smaller signatures than Dilithium can provide.
SPHINCS + is somewhat larger and slower than the other two, but it is valuable as a backup because it is based on a different mathematical approach than NIST's three other options, according to the agency.
Three of the selected algorithms are based on a family of mathematical problems called structured lattices, while SPHINCS+ uses hash functions. The additional four algorithms still under consideration are designed for general encryption and do not use structured lattices or hash functions in their approaches, NIST said.
This is “an important milestone in securing our sensitive data against the possibility of future cyberattacks from quantum computers,” Commerce Secretary Gina M. Raimondo in a statement.
The announcement follows a six-year effort led by NIST, which in 2016 called on cryptographers around the world to devise and then test encryption methods that could withstand an attack by a future quantum computer that is more powerful than the comparatively limited computers available today. The selection marks the beginning of the finale of the organization's post-quantum cryptography project.
“When built, quantum computers powerful enough to break today’s encryption will pose a serious threat to our information systems,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and NIST Director Laurie E. Locascio. “Our post-quantum cryptography program has tapped the world’s top cryptographers to produce this first set of quantum algorithms that will lead to a standard and significantly increase the security of our digital information.”
Four additional algorithms are being considered for inclusion in the standard, and NIST said it will announce the finalists from this round in the future.
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Because there are different systems and tasks that use encryption, a useful standard would offer solutions designed for different situations, use a variety of approaches to encryption, and offer more than one algorithm for each use case in case one proves vulnerable, NIST said.
Encryption uses mathematics to protect sensitive electronic information on secure websites and emails. Widely used public-key encryption systems, which are based on mathematical problems that even the fastest conventional computers find difficult to solve, ensure that these websites and messages are not accessible to unwanted third parties, the agency said.
However, a sufficiently capable quantum computer, which would be based on a different technology than today's conventional computers, could quickly solve these mathematical problems, defeating encryption systems, NIST said. To address this threat, the four algorithms are based on mathematical problems that both conventional and quantum computers should struggle to solve, thus protecting privacy both now and in the future, the agency said.
To participate in developing guidance for the transition to post-quantum cryptography, visit the NIST National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence project page
Source: techrepublic.com
