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International Conference on Ubiquitous and Future Networks

A high-speed key management method for quantum key distribution network

Ririka Takahashi, Yoshimichi Tanizawa, A. R. Dixon

Published Jul 1, 2019• 14 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) is a technique for sharing encryption keys between two adjacent nodes. It provides unconditional secure communication based on the laws of physics. From the viewpoint of network research, QKD is considered to be a component for providing secure communication in network systems. A QKD network enables each node to exchange encryption keys with arbitrary nodes. However previous research did not focus on the processing speed of the key management method essential for a QKD network. This paper focuses on the key management method assuming a high-speed QKD system for which we clarify the design, propose a high-speed method, and evaluate the throughput. The proposed method consists of four modules: (1) local key manager handling the keys generated by QKD, (2) one-time pad tunnel manager establishing the transparent encryption link, (3) global key manager generating the keys for application communication, and (4) web API providing keys to the application. The proposed method was implemented in software and evaluated by emulating QKD key generation and application key consumption. The evaluation result reveals that it is capable of handling the encryption keys at a speed of 414 Mb/s, 185 Mb/s, 85 Mb/s and 971 Mb/s, for local key manager, one-time pad tunnel manager, global key manager and web API, respectively. These are sufficient for integration with a high-speed QKD system. Furthermore, the method allows the high-speed QKD system consisting of two nodes to expand corresponding to the size of the QKD network without losing the speed advantage.

DOI
10.1109/icufn.2019.8806052

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Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) is a technique for sharing encryption keys between two adjacent nodes. It provides unconditional secure communication based on the laws of physics. From the viewpoint of network research, QKD is considered to be a component for providing secure communication in network systems. A QKD network enables each node to exchange encryption keys with arbitrary nodes. However previous research did not focus on the processing speed of the key management method essential for a QKD network. This paper focuses on the key management method assuming a high-speed QKD system for which we clarify the design, propose a high-speed method, and evaluate the throughput. The proposed method consists of four modules: (1) local key manager handling the keys generated by QKD, (2) one-time pad tunnel manager establishing the transparent encryption link, (3) global key manager generating the keys for application communication, and (4) web API providing keys to the application. The proposed method was implemented in software and evaluated by emulating QKD key generation and application key consumption. The evaluation result reveals that it is capable of handling the encryption keys at a speed of 414 Mb/s, 185 Mb/s, 85 Mb/s and 971 Mb/s, for local key manager, one-time pad tunnel manager, global key manager and web API, respectively. These are sufficient for integration with a high-speed QKD system. Furthermore, the method allows the high-speed QKD system consisting of two nodes to expand corresponding to the size of the QKD network without losing the speed advantage.
Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) is a technique for sharing encryption keys between two adjacent nodes in an unconditionally secure manner based on quantum theory. From the viewpoint of network system research, QKD is considered to be a building block for providing secure link communication in network systems. Although the communication distance is subject to a limitation attributable to the QKD fundamentals, recent research and some QKD field trials of “key relaying” over a “QKD network” are overcoming this limitation. It also enables each node on the QKD network to exchange encryption keys with arbitrary nodes on the QKD network. However, the previous research didn't address a routing method on the QKD network in detail. This paper focuses on the routing issues on the QKD network, clarifies the requirements of the routing protocol, and proposes a routing solution designed for the key relaying on the QKD network. The proposed routing solution consists of 4 components: (1) a node interface architecture addressing both encrypted and unencrypted traffics, (2) a path selection algorithm based on the number of keys, (3) an IP address assignment scheme connecting unencrypted interfaces and encrypted interfaces, and (4) a routing protocol deployment method consuming no extra keys. The proposed routing solution allows the QKD network to select a suitable key relaying path according to the QKD system condition and to reduce the extra key consumption, which optimizes the key utilization on the QKD network. The proposed routing solution was implemented with a network emulating QKD technology and evaluated. The evaluation result shows that the proposed routing solution could select a path that stores enough keys, which is suitable for a QKD network. Additional impact analysis reveals that the proposed routing solution could save up to 52% of key consumption depending on the QKD key sharing speed and the routing protocol configuration.
Quantum key distribution (QKD), a cryptography technology providing information theoretic security based on physical laws, has moved from the research stage to the engineering stage. Although the communication distance is subject to a limitation attributable to the QKD fundamentals, recent research and development of “key relaying” over a “QKD network” is overcoming this limitation. However, there are still barriers to widespread use of QKD integrated with conventional information systems: applicability and development cost. In order to break down these barriers, this paper proposes a new solution for developing secure network infrastructure based on QKD technology to accommodate multiple applications. The proposed solution introduces 3 functions: (1) a directory mechanism to manage multiple applications hosted on the QKD network, (2) a key management method to share and to allocate the keys for multiple applications, and (3) a cryptography communication library enabling existing cryptographic communication software to be ported to the QKD network easily. The proposed solution allows the QKD network to accommodate multiple applications of various types, and moreover, realizes applicability to conventional information systems easily. It also contributes to a reduction in the development cost per information system, since the development cost of the QKD network can be shared between the multiple applications. The proposed solution was implemented with a network emulating QKD technology and evaluated. The evaluation results show that the proposed solution enables the infrastructure of a single QKD network to host multiple applications concurrently, fairly, and effectively through a conventional application programming interface, OpenSSL API. In addition, the overhead of secure session establishment by the proposed solution was quantitatively evaluated and compared.
Abstract The fundamental architecture and functions of secure key management in a quantum key distribution (QKD) network with enhanced universal interfaces for smooth key sharing between arbitrary two nodes and enabling multiple secure communication applications are proposed. The proposed architecture consists of three layers: a quantum layer, key management layer and key supply layer. We explain the functions of each layer, the key formats in each layer and the key lifecycle for enabling a practical QKD network. A quantum key distribution-advanced encryption standard (QKD-AES) hybrid system and an encrypted smartphone system were developed as secure communication applications on our QKD network. The validity and usefulness of these systems were demonstrated on the Tokyo QKD Network testbed.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed a number of complete fiber-based high-speed quantum key distribution (QKD) systems that includes an 850 nm QKD system for a local area network (LAN), a 1310 nm QKD system for a metropolitan area network (MAN), and a 3-node quantum network controlled by a network manager. This paper discusses the key techniques used to implement these systems, which include polarization recovery, noise reduction, frequency up-conversion detection based on a periodically polled lithium nitrate (PPLN) waveguide, custom high-speed data handling boards and quantum network management. Using our quantum network, a QKD secured video surveillance application has been demonstrated. Our intention is to show the feasibility and sophistication of QKD systems based on current technology.
The current Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) key delivery API relies on HTTPS for secure communication. It is vulnerable to quantum computer threats due to its use of public key cryptography. To mitigate insider attacks, leveraging quantum computing threats within the security boundary and encrypting communication between the application and the KMS is essential. This paper focuses on simulating a 2-node QKD topology using the DARPAN Application. Additionally, we conduct tests on QKD KMS APIs with the Postman tool to ensure consistent retrieval of shared keys at both communication endpoints. Through our simulations and tests, we aim to validate the effectiveness and reliability of the proposed approach in securely managing cryptographic keys within the QKD-network.
Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) networks allow multiple users to generate and share secret quantum keys with unconditional security. Although many schemes of QKD networks have been presented, they are only concentrated on the system realization and physical implementations. For the complete practical quantum network, a succinct theoretic model that systematically describes the working processes from physical schemes to key process protocols, from network topology to key management, and from quantum communication to classical communication is still absent. One would hope that research and experience have shown that there are certain succinct model in the design of communication network. With demonstration of the different QKD links and the four primary types of quantum networks including probability multiplexing, wavelength multiplexing, time multiplexing and quantum multiplexing, we suggest a layer model for QKD networks which will be compatible with different implementations and protocols. We divide it into four main layers by their functional independency while defining each layer's services and responsibilities in detail, orderly named quantum links layer, quantum networks layer, quantum key distribution protocols process layer, and keys management layer. It will be helpful for the systematic design and construction of real QKD networks.