Quantum-Safe Networks in the Making

Presented by Diego Lopez (Telefonica) The use of cryptography in today’s networks is pervasive, much beyond the common use of TLS for E2E security, and including all aspects related to infrastructure management and network support systems. In this context, the threat associated to the vulnerability of current crypto algorithms to quantum computing becomes much more than a theoretical risk. The network industry needs solutions able to support quantum-safe crypto mechanisms and needs them to satisfy two main requirements: agility, as the possibility to maintain alternate evolution paths as algorithms and technologies evolve, and malleability, as the capacity of being adapted to network management best practices. This talk intends to analyze the current landscape of quantum-safe crypto, focusing on those solutions based on quantum technologies and how they can satisfy the two essential requirements mentioned above. Further on, we will analyze how these technologies can be applied to enhance network security, and the steps the industry is taking to evaluate and make the technology evolve to support quantum-safe networking, exemplified by the recently launched European initiative on quantum cryptography, the QSNP (https://qsnp.eu).