Organizations with Sensitive Encrypted Data Must Take Steps Now to Develop Quantum Resistant Solutions

(CanadaITWorld) Organizations with sensitive encrypted data must start working now to protect their data for the day when quantum computing is capable of breaking their protection. “If you are encrypting something with a shelf life greater than a decade you need to be really scared of this technology,” Atefeh Mashatan, director of cyber security research lab in Ryerson University’s School of Management says.
Organizations in the crosshairs include governments, medical institutions and financial institutions. The encryption at risk can be found in credit cards, cellphones, the HTTPS code in browses, IoT devices — anything that uses a digital certificate for public key infrastructure (PKI).
Researchers suspect some countries are collecting and storing encrypted data for the time in the not too distant future when it can be cracked. That in part is why experts say organizations need to start preparing now. Which is also why the U.S. National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) has embarked on a competition to approve standards for quantum-resistant encryption. It is scheduled to release a standard or standards in 2024.