Free Space Path Loss

Futureproofing Our Security In our increasingly connected world, the security of digital information has never been more critical. From banking transactions to private communications, our data is constantly transmitted and stored across the internet. The current systems that protect this data rely on cryptography, a branch of mathematics that helps keep information secure by encoding it in ways that are difficult to decode without the proper key. However, with the rise of quantum computers, traditional cryptography is facing new and significant threats. This is where Post-Quantum Cryptography comes into play. What is Post-Quantum Cryptography? Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) [1] refers to cryptographic algorithms that are specifically designed to be secure against the power of quantum computers. Quantum computers, once they become practical, will be capable of solving complex mathematical problems much faster than classical computers. This will render many of the encryption methods we rely on today [such as RSA (Rivest, Shamir, and Adleman – initials of the inventors) and ECC (Elliptic Curve Cryptography)] vulnerable to attack. Quantum computers operate on quantum bits, or “qubits”, which can exist in multiple states simultaneously, unlike classical bits that are either a zer (0) or one (1). This allows quantum computers to perform certain calculations exponentially faster than classical computers. For example, in a matter of seconds, a quantum computer could potentially break an RSA key, which is considered secure by today’s standards. As quantum computing technology advances, the need for PQC becomes even more urgent.