Quantum Computing Networks against Hacking Threat

Skip Sanzeri

Carlos Pedro Gonçalves

The development of automated gate specification for quantum communications and quantum networked computation opens up the way for malware designed at corrupting the automation software, changing the automated quantum communications protocols and algorithms. We study two types of attacks on automated quantum communications protocols and simulate these attacks on the superdense coding protocol, using remote access to IBM's Quantum Computers available through IBM Q Experience to simulate these attacks on what would be a low noise quantum communications network. The first type of attack leads to a hacker-controlled bijective transformation of the final measured strings, the second type of attack is a unitary scrambling attack that modifies the automated gate specification to effectively scramble the final measurement, disrupting quantum communications and taking advantage of quantum randomness upon measurement in a way that makes it difficult to distinguish from hardware malfunction or from a sudden rise in environmental noise. We show that, due to quantum entanglement and symmetries, the second type of attack works as a way to strategically disrupt quantum communications networks and quantum networked computation in a way that makes it difficult to ascertain which node was attacked. The main findings are discussed in the wider setting of quantum cybersecurity and quantum networked computation, where ways of hacking including the role of insider threats are discussed.

Sanjaikanth E Vadakkethil Somanathan Pillai, Kiran Polimetla

Quantum cryptography is a field that employs principles of quantum physics to communicate via networks. It has developed as an ability to handle the growing risks to network security, including cyber-attacks and data breaches. This age offers superior and advanced security characteristics compared to traditional cryptographic systems, making it a highly promising choice for safeguarding sensitive data. Quantum cryptography provides secure communication channels that are resistant to eavesdropping and hacking. Quantum key distribution (QKD) algorithms are utilized to generate and distribute encryption keys by using the distinct properties of quantum particles. Intercepting the keys without altering their quantum state is exceedingly difficult, requiring precise manipulation. Quantum cryptography has a notable effect on community defense by effectively mitigating the threat posed by quantum computing. Due to the rise of quantum computing, conventional encryption methods are becoming more susceptible to attacks that could compromise the security of encryption keys.

Cheng Li Wu

Seok Hyung Lie, Yong Siah Teo, Hyunseok Jeong

We study the problem of quantum hacking, which is the procedure of quantum-information extraction from and installation on a quantum network given only partial access. This problem generalizes a central topic in contemporary physics -- information recovery from systems undergoing scrambling dynamics, such as the Hayden--Preskill protocol in black-hole studies. We show that a properly prepared partially entangled probe state can generally outperform a maximally entangled one in quantum hacking. Moreover, we prove that finding an optimal decoder for this stronger task is equivalent to that for Hayden--Preskill-type protocols, and supply analytical formulas for the optimal hacking fidelity of large networks. In the two-user scenario where Bob attempts to hack Alice's data, we find that the optimal fidelity increases with Bob's hacking space relative to Alice's user space. However, if a third neutral party, Charlie, is accessing the computer concurrently, the optimal hacking fidelity against Alice drops with Charlie's user-space dimension, rendering targeted quantum hacking futile in high-dimensional multi-user scenarios without classical attacks. When applied to the black-hole information problem, the limited hacking fidelity implies a reflectivity decay of a black hole as an information mirror.