The prospect of large-scale quantum computers necessitates the design, development, and standardization of post-quantum cryptography (PQC). Industrial control systems (ICS) and critical infrastructures are expected to be among the first industrial environments to adopt PQC. As their components have a long life span (≥ 10 years) and are increasingly interconnected to form an Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), they require strong and long-lasting security guarantees. Because of these high-security requirements, IIoT products are also increasingly equipped with additional hardware security elements — often Trusted Platform Modules (TPMs).
The prospect of large-scale quantum computers necessitates the design, development, and standardization of post-quantum cryptography (PQC). Industrial control systems (ICS) and critical infrastructures are expected to be among the first industrial environments to adopt PQC. As their components have a long life span (≥ 10 years) and are increasingly interconnected to form an Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), they require strong and long-lasting security guarantees. Because of these high-security requirements, IIoT products are also increasingly equipped with additional hardware security elements — often Trusted Platform Modules (TPMs).
The explosive growth of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) technologies has been reshaping manufacturing, energy, transportation and infrastructure with real-time monitoring and automation supported by predictive analytics. The more interconnected machines are, the more vulnerable they become to advanced cyberattacks. RSA and ECC are two of the dominant cryptographic algorithms that 60% of the IIoT communications today. They are still susceptible to quantum computing attacks, especially from Shor, which can easily break public-key encryption. This new risk, and the threat it represents, calls for a monitoring of the quantum situation by adding Post Quantum Cryptography (PQC) to guarantee data privacy and resilient systems. This work studies the quantum-empowered security approach to IIoT environment and considers lattice-based, hash-based and code-based cryptography techniques immune to quantum attacks. This paper investigates the industrial system design demands, identifies some of these weaknesses, and presents a secure communication architecture including post-quantum cryptography for device authentication, secure firmware updates and data encryption. Studies show that due to constraints in resources, triage for IIoT devices is difficult, especially because of limitations of processors, among others; latency and scalability are two issues. The approach proposed showcases a means for industrial cybersecurity to benefit from post-quantum cryptography without losing efficiency.
The machinery of industrial environments was connected to the Internet years ago with the scope of increasing their performance. However, this change made such environments vulnerable against cyber-attacks that can compromise their correct functioning resulting in economic or social problems. Moreover, implementing cryptosystems in the communications between operational technology (OT) devices is a more challenging task than for information technology (IT) environments since the OT networks are generally composed of legacy elements, characterized by low-computational capabilities. Consequently, implementing cryptosystems in industrial communication networks faces a tradeoff between the security of the communications and the amortization of the industrial infrastructure. Critical infrastructure (CI) refers to the industries which provide key resources for the daily social and economical development, e.g., electricity. Furthermore, a new threat to cybersecurity has arisen with the theoretical proposal of quantum computers, due to their potential ability of breaking state-of-the-art cryptography protocols, such as RSA or elliptic curve cryptography. Many global agents have become aware that transitioning their secure communications to a quantum secure paradigm is a priority that should be established before the arrival of fault-tolerance. In this article, we aim to describe the problematic of implementing post-quantum cryptography (PQC) to CI environments. For doing so, we describe the requirements for these scenarios and how they differ against IT. We also introduce classical cryptography and how quantum computers pose a threat to such security protocols. Furthermore, we introduce state-of-the-art proposals of PQC protocols and present their characteristics. We conclude by discussing the problematic of integrating PQC in industrial environments.
“Integrate PQC into IoT and Embedded Systems”, addresses the formidable challenges of bringing post-quantum cryptography (PQC) to long-lifecycle, constrained devices that underpin critical infrastructure. The chapter explores how operational technology (OT), industrial control systems (ICS), and embedded Internet of Things (IoT) hardware introduce unique constraints for cryptographic modernization due to hardware limitations, vendor dependencies, and legacy system constraints. The chapter offers a practical roadmap for PQC integration across industrial and embedded environments, highlighting mitigation techniques like cryptographic gateways, segmented network design, secure firmware updates, and compensating controls for irreplaceable systems. Real-world examples from sectors like energy, healthcare, and manufacturing demonstrate the urgency and complexity of securing devices such as programmable logic controllers, smart meters, and medical IoT. With references to key tools, standards (e.g., NIST, IETF), and vendors such as WolfSSL, Thales, and Fortanix, the chapter links high-level policy with tactical implementation. It also adapts the Q-Ready Framework to product development use cases, extending its lifecycle methodology, which includes discovery, planning, implementation, validation, and maintenance, into the realm of commercial hardware and software. This chapter is a critical resource for organizations facing the dual challenge of securing constrained devices against quantum threats while maintaining operational continuity. It blends governance guidance, secure development lifecycle integration, and practical migration strategies, offering a detailed, forward-looking blueprint for building quantum-resilient systems at the edge. By taking actions like modular crypto design, proactive vendor engagement, and mitigation planning, organizations can avoid crisis-driven overhauls tomorrow, positioning themselves at the forefront of PQC adoption in embedded technology.
Trusted Computing (TC), which has long been the cornerstone of hardware-based platform integrity, faces an existential threat from the advent of large-scale quantum computers capable of breaking its underlying classical cryptography. This review systematically analyzes the imperative transition to Post-Quantum Trusted Computing (PQC-TC), synthesizing the leading research and industry-driven efforts to secure this critical paradigm. We present a taxonomy of PQC-TC approaches, including the PQC modernization of existing Trusted Platform Modules (TPMs) for functions like measured boot and remote attestation. Our analysis highlights the dual challenges of adapting to new algorithms with significantly larger key sizes and higher computational overheads, as well as the need for robust migration strategies. We examine the pivotal roles of the NIST PQC Standardization Process and the Trusted Computing Group (TCG) in defining the path to commercial readiness. While PQC modernization is the most viable nearterm solution, we identify open research challenges in formal security modeling, resource optimization for embedded systems, and the long-term potential of hybrid architectures integrating quantum hardware. This paper concludes that the successful evolution of TC hinges on proactive, collaborative efforts to build a secure, resilient, and quantum-ready foundation for future digital systems.
The threat of a cryptographically relevant quantum computer contributes to an increasing interest in the field of post-quantum cryptography (PQC). Compared to existing research efforts regarding the integration of PQC into the Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocol, industrial communication protocols have so far been neglected. Since industrial cyber-physical systems (CPS) are typically deployed for decades, protection against such long-term threats is needed. In this work, we propose two novel solutions for the integration of post-quantum (PQ) primitives (digital signatures and key establishment) into the industrial protocol Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture (OPC UA): a hybrid solution combining conventional cryptography with PQC and a solution solely based on PQC. Both approaches provide mutual authentication between client and server and are realized with certificates fully compliant to the X.509 standard. We implement the two solutions and measure and evaluate their performance across three different security levels. All selected algorithms (Kyber, Dilithium, and Falcon) are candidates for standardization by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). We show that Falcon is a suitable option – especially – when using floating-point hardware provided by our ARM-based evaluation platform. Our proposed hybrid solution provides PQ security for early adopters but comes with additional performance and communication requirements. Our solution solely based on PQC shows superior performance across all evaluated security levels in terms of handshake duration compared to conventional OPC UA but comes at the cost of increased handshake sizes. In addition to our performance evaluation, we provide a proof of security in the symbolic model for our two PQC-based variants of OPC UA. For this proof, we use the cryptographic protocol verifier ProVerif and formally verify confidentiality and authentication properties of our quantum-resistant variants.
The Internet of Things (IoT) has revolutionized the way devices communicate and interact, enabling seamless integration into various aspects of daily life by billions of connected devices equipped with small, embedded controllers that monitor and manage our increasingly interconnected world. The swift growth of IoT devices has led to significant concerns about data security and privacy. Traditional cryptographic algorithms, usually lightweight cryptography, are effective against classical computing threats. However, they are vulnerable to attacks from emerging quantum computing technologies, which can quickly solve the mathematically hard problems used in classical cryptography. Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) offers promising solution by providing cryptographic primitives resistant to quantum attacks. This chapter addresses challenges posed by resource constrained IoT devices, like limited processing power and memory. It also explores the integration of PQC algorithms suitable for IoT environments, considering factors like computational efficiency and resistance to quantum attacks.