Chinese company uses quantum numbers to minimize cybersecurity threats
Cybersecurity researchers are always looking for new ways to secure information on the cloud. Researchers in China have now gone a step ahead and tapped into quantum physics to keep data safe, a press release said.
The increasing use of cloud storage has increased the risks to data security, and cybersecurity researchers have been looking at distributed cloud storage as a plausible solution to this problem.
As we approach the quantum age of computing, the researchers at QuantumCTek Co in China, which calls itself a quantum information technology firm, have found a cost-effective way to do this.
What is Shamir’s Secret Sharing?
The research team used quantum random numbers as encryption keys to secure information on the cloud. Since these keys can be cracked with quantum computers, the team went a step ahead and dispersed them via Shamir’s secret sharing and combined it with quantum key distribution (QKD) algorithms.
As the name suggests, Shamir’s secret sharing is also a key distribution algorithm used to distribute private information to a select group of people. The personal information remains a secret until most groups pool their knowledge and work together.
It is expected to use Sharmir’s secret sharing with other QKD algorithms, but these are accompanied by significant requirements of cloud storage space and, hence, substantial costs.
Working out a cost-effective solution
The team at QuantumCTek used the same approach but with one minor difference: applying erasure coding within ciphertext before transmitting data through QKD algorithms.
Erasure coding works by splitting the data into multiple fragments or data blocks and parity blocks used for data recovery. This additional step not only provides quantum security but also improves fault tolerance. The efficient storage achieved using this intermediate step allows for a more cost-effective approach.
“In essence, our solution is quantum-secure and serves as a practical application of the fusion between quantum and cryptography technologies,” said Yong Zhao, vice president of QuantumCTek Co. Ltd., in the press release. “QKD-generated keys secure both user data uploads to servers and data transmissions to dispersed cloud storage nodes.”
The team also explored if the approach could be used beyond data transmission and offer quantum security to data storage, and the system worked equally well. The researchers reached this conclusion after putting the solution through a series of tests, such as encryption/decryption, critical preservation, and data storage, before accepting the results. “It not only achieves quantum security but also saves storage space when compared to traditional mirroring methods or ones based on Shamir’s secret sharing, which is commonly used for distributed management of sensitive data,” Zhao added.
More importantly, the solution is feasible from both a technology and an engineering perspective and meets the quantum and cryptographic standards to withstand challenges posed by quantum computing.
With the ability to compute at speeds years ahead of today’s fastest computers, quantum computers could quickly be tasked with hacking into the most secure destinations and overpowering them rather quickly. The need for a quantum-age cybersecurity solution has never been more vital.
Source: Interesting Engineering
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Chinese company uses quantum numbers to minimize cybersecurity threats