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The New Scientist

Quantum Enigma can't be cracked

Jacob Aron

Published Jan 1, 2013• 0 citations
OpenAlex

Abstract

Alan Turing and an army of codebreakers took years to crack the Enigma code during the second world war. Just be thankful the Nazis weren't using a quantum Enigma machine. Quantum key distribution can already keep secret the key to a code. Enigma machines are like souped-up typewriters, with an illuminated panel above the keyboard that also displays the alphabet. Type in a letter and a different letter on the panel lights up, indicating how to encrypt that character. Wired rotors do the scrambling by guiding an electrical signal along a certain path.

Related papers

A quantum jump in security

Hoi‐Kwong Lo

ABSTRACT Q uantum mechanics can revolutionize the art of code-making by breaking standard encryption schemes and by making unbreakable codes. In this document, I survey the motivation, power and limitation of quantum code-making. * Keywords: Quantum computing, quantum information, quantum cryptography, security, key distribution,cryptography 1. INTRODUCTION Human desire to keep written messages secret is almost as old as writing itself. Indeed, cryptography—the artof code-making—dated back to the Babylonians. For thousands of years, code-makers and code-breakers have engaged in an escalating arms race with each other.' Cryptographers do not sleep well. Every innovation in code-making has so far been defeated by new innovation in code-breaking with disastrous consequence tothe unsuspecting users of those insecure codes. For instance, Queen Mary of Scotland was executed by QueenElizabeth following the decoding of encrypted communications between Queen Mary and her conspirators whichprovided the irrefutable proof of her quilt in plotting against Queen Elizabeth. In the Second World War, thebreaking of the legendary German Engima code by the Allied code-breakers contributed significantly to theoutcome of the war. In cryptography, one must expect the unexpected and even the unthinkable.Q uantum mechanics has made a recent entry in this life and death struggle between code-makers and code-23 In this document, I will address the following frequently asked questions:(1) What quantum code-breaking can do?(2) What quantum code-making can do?(3) What quantum code-making cannot do?

Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE•Dec 12, 2003•0 citations

Making unbreakable code

Justin Mullins

A product is on the way that relies on the quantum properties of photons to keep out eavesdroppers. All of them. The battle between codemakers and codebreakers is centuries old, but at the start of the 21st century, could it finally be drawing to a close? Physicists are putting the finishing touches to a method of encrypting messages that is more secure than anything that has gone before. Unlike the ciphers of the past, this new method has the potential to be absolutely unbreakable, not just practically unbreakable, but theoretically unbreakable. Mathematicians believe they can prove it. Central to the technique are the strange laws of quantum mechanics. Already experimental messages encrypted using quantum mechanics are being sent over tens of kilometers of optical fibers and received securely. Researchers are confident that it will not be long before ultra-secret messages are routinely transmitted in this way. But while quantum cryptography may be perfect in theory, practical considerations introduce security loopholes that an eavesdropper can exploit. The seriousness of these is still unclear, and physicists believe they can plug most of the holes with more efficient equipment. Still, enough cracks remain to maintain a healthy interest among cryptographers.

IEEE Spectrum•May 1, 2002•13 citations

From Quantum Cheating to Quantum Security

Daniel Gottesman, Hoi‐Kwong Lo

For thousands of years, code-makers and code-breakers have been competing for supremacy. Their arsenals may soon include a powerful new weapon: quantum mechanics. Cryptography — the art of code-making — has a long history of military and diplomatic applications, dating back to the Babylonians. In World World Two, the Allies ’ feat of breaking the legendary German code, Enigma, contributed greatly to the final Allied victory. Nowadays, cryptography is becoming increasingly important in commercial applications for electronic business and electronic commerce. Sensitive data such as credit card numbers and personal identification numbers (PINs) are routinely transmitted in encrypted form. Quantum mechanics is a new tool for both code-breakers and code-makers in their eternal arms race. It has the potential to revolutionize cryptography both by creating perfectly secure codes and by breaking standard encryption schemes. The most well-known application of cryptography is secure communication [1]. Suppose Alice would like to send a message to Bob, but there is an eavesdropper, Eve, who is wiretapping the channel. To prevent Eve from knowing the message, Alice and Bob may perform encryption, i.e., transform the message to something that is not intelligible to Eve during the communication. On receiving the message, Bob inverts the transformation and recovers the message (see figure 1). Bob’s advantage over Eve lies in his knowledge of a secret, commonly called the key, that he shares with Alice. The key tells him how to decode the message. For example: The rumble of Soviet tanks shook the Prague hotel room (number 117) as secret agent John Blond finished decoding his orders from his superior N. He tore the used page from the codebook and immediately burned it with his lighter. Blond is using a perfectly unbreakable cipher, a “one-time pad. ” The secret codebook allows N and Blond to share a long secret binary string — the key —

•Jan 1, 2000•44 citations

From Quantum Cheating to Quantum Security

Daniel Gottesman, Hoi-Kwong Lo

Cryptography—the art of code-making—has a long history of military and diplomatic applications, dating back to the Babylonians. In World War II, the Allies' feat of breaking the legendary German code Enigma contributed greatly to their final victory. Nowadays, cryptography is becoming increasingly important in commercial applications for electronic business. Sensitive data such as credit card numbers and personal identification numbers (PINs) are routinely transmitted in encrypted form. Quantum mechanics is a new tool for both code-breakers and code-makers in their eternal arms race. It has the potential to revolutionize cryptography both by creating perfectly secure codes and by breaking standard encryption schemes.

arXiv:quant-ph/0111100•Physics Today•Nov 1, 2000•27 citations

Experimentally Demonstrating Quantum Data Locking with a Quantum Enigma Machine*

Daniel J. Lum, John C. Howell, Michael S. Allman +5 more

We present an experimental demonstration of quantum data locking as a quantum enigma machine that encrypts 6 bits per photon with less than 6 bits per photon of encryption key while remaining information-theoretically secure.

Frontiers in Optics•Jan 1, 2016•0 citations

Quantum enigma machines

Seth Lloyd

Enigma machines are devices that perform cryptography using pseudo-random numbers. The original enigma machine code was broken by detecting hidden patterns in these pseudo-random numbers. This paper proposes a model for a quantum optical enigma machine and shows that the phenomenon of quantum data locking makes such quantum enigma machines provably secure even in the presence of noise and loss.

arXiv:1307.0380•Jul 1, 2013•12 citations
Alan Turing and an army of codebreakers took years to crack the Enigma code during the second world war. Just be thankful the Nazis weren't using a quantum Enigma machine. Quantum key distribution can already keep secret the key to a code. Enigma machines are like souped-up typewriters, with an illuminated panel above the keyboard that also displays the alphabet. Type in a letter and a different letter on the panel lights up, indicating how to encrypt that character. Wired rotors do the scrambling by guiding an electrical signal along a certain path.
ABSTRACT Q uantum mechanics can revolutionize the art of code-making by breaking standard encryption schemes and by making unbreakable codes. In this document, I survey the motivation, power and limitation of quantum code-making. * Keywords: Quantum computing, quantum information, quantum cryptography, security, key distribution,cryptography 1. INTRODUCTION Human desire to keep written messages secret is almost as old as writing itself. Indeed, cryptography—the artof code-making—dated back to the Babylonians. For thousands of years, code-makers and code-breakers have engaged in an escalating arms race with each other.' Cryptographers do not sleep well. Every innovation in code-making has so far been defeated by new innovation in code-breaking with disastrous consequence tothe unsuspecting users of those insecure codes. For instance, Queen Mary of Scotland was executed by QueenElizabeth following the decoding of encrypted communications between Queen Mary and her conspirators whichprovided the irrefutable proof of her quilt in plotting against Queen Elizabeth. In the Second World War, thebreaking of the legendary German Engima code by the Allied code-breakers contributed significantly to theoutcome of the war. In cryptography, one must expect the unexpected and even the unthinkable.Q uantum mechanics has made a recent entry in this life and death struggle between code-makers and code-23 In this document, I will address the following frequently asked questions:(1) What quantum code-breaking can do?(2) What quantum code-making can do?(3) What quantum code-making cannot do?
A product is on the way that relies on the quantum properties of photons to keep out eavesdroppers. All of them. The battle between codemakers and codebreakers is centuries old, but at the start of the 21st century, could it finally be drawing to a close? Physicists are putting the finishing touches to a method of encrypting messages that is more secure than anything that has gone before. Unlike the ciphers of the past, this new method has the potential to be absolutely unbreakable, not just practically unbreakable, but theoretically unbreakable. Mathematicians believe they can prove it. Central to the technique are the strange laws of quantum mechanics. Already experimental messages encrypted using quantum mechanics are being sent over tens of kilometers of optical fibers and received securely. Researchers are confident that it will not be long before ultra-secret messages are routinely transmitted in this way. But while quantum cryptography may be perfect in theory, practical considerations introduce security loopholes that an eavesdropper can exploit. The seriousness of these is still unclear, and physicists believe they can plug most of the holes with more efficient equipment. Still, enough cracks remain to maintain a healthy interest among cryptographers.
For thousands of years, code-makers and code-breakers have been competing for supremacy. Their arsenals may soon include a powerful new weapon: quantum mechanics. Cryptography — the art of code-making — has a long history of military and diplomatic applications, dating back to the Babylonians. In World World Two, the Allies ’ feat of breaking the legendary German code, Enigma, contributed greatly to the final Allied victory. Nowadays, cryptography is becoming increasingly important in commercial applications for electronic business and electronic commerce. Sensitive data such as credit card numbers and personal identification numbers (PINs) are routinely transmitted in encrypted form. Quantum mechanics is a new tool for both code-breakers and code-makers in their eternal arms race. It has the potential to revolutionize cryptography both by creating perfectly secure codes and by breaking standard encryption schemes. The most well-known application of cryptography is secure communication [1]. Suppose Alice would like to send a message to Bob, but there is an eavesdropper, Eve, who is wiretapping the channel. To prevent Eve from knowing the message, Alice and Bob may perform encryption, i.e., transform the message to something that is not intelligible to Eve during the communication. On receiving the message, Bob inverts the transformation and recovers the message (see figure 1). Bob’s advantage over Eve lies in his knowledge of a secret, commonly called the key, that he shares with Alice. The key tells him how to decode the message. For example: The rumble of Soviet tanks shook the Prague hotel room (number 117) as secret agent John Blond finished decoding his orders from his superior N. He tore the used page from the codebook and immediately burned it with his lighter. Blond is using a perfectly unbreakable cipher, a “one-time pad. ” The secret codebook allows N and Blond to share a long secret binary string — the key —
Cryptography—the art of code-making—has a long history of military and diplomatic applications, dating back to the Babylonians. In World War II, the Allies' feat of breaking the legendary German code Enigma contributed greatly to their final victory. Nowadays, cryptography is becoming increasingly important in commercial applications for electronic business. Sensitive data such as credit card numbers and personal identification numbers (PINs) are routinely transmitted in encrypted form. Quantum mechanics is a new tool for both code-breakers and code-makers in their eternal arms race. It has the potential to revolutionize cryptography both by creating perfectly secure codes and by breaking standard encryption schemes.