Hacking Breakthrough

How many of us feel unsafe on-line? How many of us have faced endless intrusions into our on-line lives by scam emails or even had our data stolen? Most it seems for the former and many for the latter. With the progress of quantum computers, it is likely that this will only get worse, putting many of us off using the internet on our computers, tablets and our smart phones. A nightmare scenario for everyone who in short order have become addicted to the freedoms and access to information and communication modern technology has delivered.

So, in a world plagued by hacking a form of seemingly unbreakable encryption is the Holy Grail of not only computing but of the whole internet. Now it is reported that following  decades of co-operation, during which two men developed a technique based on quantum physics, the behaviour of particles of matter, including electrons and photons, Charles H Bennett and Gilles Brassard have now “redefined secure communication and computing”

Their work is destined to be central to electronic communications in a world that depends heavily on data-sharing, but which for years has been trying to develop more powerful quantum computers. Current encryption technology relies on complex mathematical combinations, but many scientists believe that the arrival of quantum computers will make this insecure. By contrast, Bennett and Brassard’s theory, BB84, shows that any attempt to hack or copy their quantum encryption key changes the very behaviour of its elements, making replication impossible, heralding a “pathway toward securing digital communications in the decades ahead”.

Known as quantum cryptography, their most important contribution is the BB84 protocol (proposed in 1984), the first practical method for quantum key distribution (QKD), a way for two parties to securely share encryption keys using the principles of quantum mechanics.

Instead of sending a key directly, the sender uses quantum states (photons). Because of quantum physics, any eavesdropping will leave detectable traces. The relevance is that it uses quantum properties (like photon polarization) to transmit information. Any attempt at eavesdropping disturbs the system, alerting the communicating parties. This makes it theoretically safe from any hacking attempt using classical methods.

Sources:

1-https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/quantum-cryptography-and-secretkey-distillation/bb84-protocol/ADE897BE4AB74E6C15FB1D5A684469DF

2- https://www.qnulabs.com/glossary/bb84-protocol

3- tps://quantumzeitgeist.com/the-bb84-protocol

4- https://everything.explained.today/BB84

5- https://journals.aps.org/prl/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevLett.85.441