• EncryptionU of T-led research team discovers new quantum encryption method to foil hackers

     

    Quantum cryptography is, in principle, a foolproof way to prevent hacking; it ensures that any attempt by an eavesdropper to read encoded communication data will lead to disturbances that can be detected by the legitimate users

  • Securing the cloudQuantum physics makes possible perfectly secure cloud computing

    Computer data processing and storage are increasingly done in the cloud; the challenge in cloud-based system is to ensure that clients’ data stays private; researchers have now shown that perfectly secure cloud computing can be achieved with quantum computers

  • Cybersecurity / quantum cryptographyDefeating detector blinding attacks on quantum cryptography

    Quantum cryptography is a method to distribute digital encryption keys across an optical fiber; the protocol has been proven to be perfectly secure from eavesdropping; any differences between the theoretical protocol and its real-world implementation, however, can be exploited to compromise the security of specific systems; one form of attack on quantum cryptography is called a detector blinding attack — but Toshiba researchers show how such attacks can be rendered ineffective

  • Quantum encryptionCommercial quantum cryptography vulnerable to attack

    Quantum cryptography is one of the most secure known means of transmitting data; in fact, it is often described as “unbreakable” because it relies on the Heisenberg uncertainty principle — observation causes perturbation: if a third party does intercept a quantum signal, this very interception changes the encryption key, making the tampering apparent to parties at both ends; researchers, though, developed and tested a technique exploiting imperfections in quantum cryptography systems to implement an attack

  • World Cup watchWorld Cup security uses quantum encryption to thwart hackers

    Scientists in South Africa are helping the organizers of the World Cup by tapping the laws of physics to prevent hackers from monitoring videos, e-mails, and phone calls relayed between Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium and a nearby operations center for police, firefighters, and military personnel

  • A first: Commercial quantum cryptography system hacked

    Physicists have mounted the first successful attack of its kind on a commercial quantum cryptography system; since in the real world it is impossible to get rid of errors entirely, quantum encryption tolerates a small level of error; various proofs show that if the quantum bit error rate is less than 20 percent, then the message is secure; these proofs, though, assume that the errors are the result of noise from the environment; researchers show how hackers can exploit this assumption

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  • Breakthrough: new record bit rate for quantum key distribution

    Quantum encryption is the ultimate in unbreakable encrypted communication; it is based upon sending encoding single photons (particles of light) along the fiber; the laws of quantum physics dictate that any attempt by an eavesdropper to intercept and measure the photons alters their encoding, meaning that eavesdropping on quantum keys cannot not be detected; the major problem quantum encryption faces is the relatively short distance of encrypted transmissions