Existing cryptographic systems will become vulnerable in the age of quantum computing.
Quantum cryptography and quantum-resistant cryptography are on the rise.
U+ Becomes First to Apply Quantum-Resistant Cryptography to Customer-Only Network Equipment


In the age of quantum computing, existing cryptographic systems may be vulnerable, necessitating new security technologies. Representative examples include quantum cryptography and the emerging quantum-resistant cryptography technology.

LG Uplus announced on the 10th that it has developed post-quantum cryptography (PQC) technology with Seoul National University's Industrial Mathematics Center and Crypto Lab and applied it to customer-only network optical communication transmission equipment.

Quantum-resistant cryptography technology enables the provision of security services such as cryptographic key exchange, data encryption/decryption, and integrity verification by utilizing mathematical algorithms that would take billions of years to solve even for quantum computers. It can be implemented using only software without any separate equipment, so it can be applied to everything from mobile phones to small IoT devices.

Last December, U+ signed a business agreement on wired and wireless quantum-resistant encryption with Seoul National University's Industrial Mathematics Center and Crypto Lab, and has been cooperating to develop encryption technology that cannot be broken even by quantum computers.

LG Uplus, the world's first company to apply quantum-resistant cryptography to its customer-only network equipment, plans to apply quantum-resistant cryptography technology to its 5G services and wired and wireless subscriber services to achieve end-to-end security.

Currently, the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is conducting standardization work with IBM, Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and others, and research is also being conducted in the OQS (Open Quantum Safe) project, which is a joint project of several IT companies and security research institutes.

The quantum-resistant cryptography technology applied this time is a purely domestic technology developed by Seoul National University and Crypto Lab, and is expected to contribute to the domestic production of next-generation standard cryptography.

Cheon Jeong-hee, director of the Seoul National University Industrial Mathematics Center, said, "Through follow-up research, we will continue to cooperate with the industry to replace electronic encryption, authentication, and signatures with quantum-resistant encryption that is safe for quantum computers, and to commercialize it."