Securing today’s communication networks against future quantum threats
Quantum-safe telecommunications without compromise
Quantum computing represents a huge opportunity for telecoms operators and the sectors they serve
As quantum computers become more widely available, the public key encryption techniques used to keep sensitive information safe today will be rendered insecure.
Preparing communications networks for the quantum era
The transition to quantum-safe networking has already begun. As quantum computing advances, telecommunications providers face the challenge of protecting critical infrastructure, sensitive data and customer communications against emerging threats, including “harvest now, decrypt later” attacks. Organizations must act now to ensure their networks remain trusted, resilient and secure in the quantum era.
Quantum-Safe Networking for telecom operators
Toshiba’s Quantum-Safe Networking Platform enables telecommunications providers to integrate and scale quantum-safe security into their existing communications networks without compromising operational performance.
Designed for real-world deployment, the QSN Platform provides fundamentally secure quantum-safe networking via a unified, interoperable and extensible platform of products and deployment capabilities.
Importantly, the QSN platform is built to seamlessly integrate into todays networks and to efficiently scale and grow as your strategy or market dictates.
The platform integrates with existing network infrastructures and can support deployments from a single dedicated connection to large metro, hub-and-spoke, ring, mesh and long-distance networks. Products including the QSN Transceiver, QSN Hub, QSN Spoke, QSN Link and QSN Multiplexer provide a range of network architectures and deployment capabilities, whilst the QSN Controller, QSN KDS and QSN KMS simplify deployment and management.
Toshiba’s carrier-grade platform is designed to integrate with existing networks, support flexible deployment topologies and enable quantum and conventional data traffic to coexist on existing fibre infrastructure.
Built on more than two decades of deployment experience, Toshiba’s technologies have been proven in operational networks worldwide and support operators as they navigate the largest cryptographic transformation in history.
Toshiba’s high performance, high-capacity QSN Platform will enable operators to provide a range of innovative quantum-safe services to complement their existing service portfolios. These services can be deployed to targeted geographies and sectors then easily and efficiently scaled as required throughout the network, serving many users.
Why Toshiba Quantum
Technology
Two decades of research, and unparalleled expertise
We’ve been at the cutting edge of quantum-safe communications since 1999. Building on more than 25 years of research, development and deployment experience, Toshiba has pioneered technologies that underpin today’s Quantum-Safe Networking (QSN) Platform. We continue to advance the science of quantum-safe networking, helping organizations navigate the transition to quantum-safe networking with scalable, real-world solutions that can be deployed today.
Toshiba Quantum Technologies for Telecoms Providers
Latest insights
Toshiba Open Sessions 2022: The Future of the Quantum Economy
The future of quantum-secure networking
The BT-Toshiba quantum-secure networking partnership
Latest resources
Global-Scale Information-Theoretic Secure Communication using QKD and Distributed Symmetric Key Establishment
Hungary’s first Multi-Link Quantum Key Distribution Network
Transforming Telecoms: Easing Your Transition to a Quantum-Safe Network
Securing Critical Infrastructure using Trackside Fiber
London Quantum-Secured Metro Network (PDF, 480KB)
[EXTERNAL] Paving the way toward 800 Gbps quantum-secured optical channel deployment in mission-critical environments
Future-proof your existing infrastructure against the quantum computing threat while delivering the services and performance your customers demand.
Find out more about our QKD SystemsIn detail: Quantum-safe networking for telecoms
What are the applications of quantum computing in telecoms?
Quantum computing looks set to revolutionize almost every industrial sector. Quantum computers can solve complex mathematical problems that cannot be tackled by traditional machines – or, if they were, would take thousands of years to complete. This increase in computing power alone will have ramifications across the globe.
It certainly affords new opportunities for telecommunications. New products such as Quantum Computing as a Service (QCaaS) could become prevalent, giving researchers and organizations access to quantum computing capabilities via the cloud.
There are many reasons to be excited about quantum technology. But, as we have seen above, quantum computers also threaten the effectiveness of current public key encryption techniques. The telecoms industry can adopt Quantum Key Distribution to create truly quantum-safe networks, ensuring sensitive data remains private even as new security challenges emerge.
Why is data vulnerable in transit?
‘Data in transit’ is one of the three ‘states’ of data, during which it requires specific protections. While the others, ‘at rest’ and ‘in use’, typically describe data housed in one location, data in transit is vulnerable to certain high-security threats like eavesdropping attacks and data theft while it’s in motion between points.
In order to secure data in transit against such attacks, networks need to be resilient against decryption attempts. That’s one reason why QKD technology is so successful at ensuring data security, as the quantum-secure data signals will alter when eavesdroppers are detected, meaning that the transmissions cannot be decrypted, and the network is secure.
How does QKD address ‘harvest now and decrypt later’ attacks?
‘Harvest now, decrypt later’ attacks are on the rise. Criminals are working to collect data, which is currently encrypted using traditional cryptographic methods, with a view to accessing the sensitive information once quantum computers become commercially available.
These quantum computers already exist. Commercial, scalable quantum computing will soon be a reality. That’s why it’s vital for telecoms providers to transition to QKD as soon as possible. Only data which is encrypted using quantum-secure methods will be able to withstand decryption from a quantum computer, and any data transmitted via conventional methods is currently at risk of being harvested, and stored, for future decryption.
Will QKD work in existing or older fiber networks?
Optical fibers tend to degrade over time, which can reduce the strength of data signals, including the photons that make up the quantum signal. However, thanks to their high optical loss budgets, Toshiba QKD systems offer the headroom to accommodate potential fiber performance degradation while still conveying the quantum signal, thereby successfully transmitting quantum-secure keys and maintaining the quantum safety of the fiber link.
Why has it been challenging for telecoms providers to implement QKD to date?
Integrating QKD into existing networks has traditionally required providers to use dedicated dark fiber cables alongside their original infrastructure to carry the QKD signal. This results in financial, logistical and operational expenses and takes significant time to deploy, which is why QKD multiplexing techniques that enable true QKD and data co-existence on the existing deployed fiber provides real and significant benefits to operators.
What are the challenges associated with multiplexed QKD?
QKD signals are typically 100 million times weaker than those used to carry other forms of network data. It’s therefore challenging to preserve the quantum signal in the presence of multiple conventional data channels. In particular, scattering effects that result from the transmission of multiple, high power conventional data channels can potentially interfere with the quantum signals, making quantum key distribution impossible.
Multiplexing data with QKD information on the same fiber typically involves telecoms providers making trade-offs on a number of factors: the number of data channels multiplexed, the total optical launch power into the fiber, the QKD secret bit rate and the overall fiber transmission distance.
How does Toshiba’s technology overcome the challenges associated with QKD multiplexing?
Our multiplexed (MU) QKD system places the quantum data channel in the O-Band (1310 nm), spectrally distant fromthe data channels in the C-band (1550 nm). This separation reduces scattering effects and potential interference.
As a result, it becomes possible to send QKD signals on fibers carrying multiple, conventional data signals, and to do so without impa cting the performance of the existing optical network. Using this technique, existing deployed networks can be easily and incrementally upgraded to support QKD.
What happens if I need to grow my network after introducing multiplexing?
Toshiba’s multiplexed QKD systems are highly resilient, providing superior multiplexing performance across multiple data channels. With high optical launch power, it is possible to add additional channels without any impact on the overall performance of data or quantum channels.
This means that our multiplexed systems can be deployed on today’s fiber networks, running today’s data services, with the freedom to scale as needed.
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