Post-Quantum Security Measures for the Internet of Things

Introduction

Since its emergence, the Internet of Things (IoT) has been utilized in a wide variety of applications, including smart cities, intelligent systems, smart homes, smart agriculture, healthcare, banking, etc. The collection, processing, and sharing of information are vital for the successful operation of IoT systems. The leakage of these data can adversely affect privacy in the IoT networks. Cyberattacks on IoT networks include data theft, sniffing, botnet attacks like Mirai, distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks, malicious code injection, reprogram attacks, and access control attacks. A rigorous testing process is needed in order to quantify the level of risk associated with the deployment of IoT devices in various applications. However, it is difficult to develop a unified strategy for IoT security because a wide range of technologies and platforms are used. Since the security of IoT devices can significantly increase their energy consumption, it is simply not possible to implement security measures on some devices due to a lack of computing power and/or memory. Therefore, it is critical to identify possible threats and then implement appropriate countermeasures tailored to the specific requirements of the IoT system (Lin, et al., 2017) (Fouladi, Ermis, & Anarim, 2022).

In parallel with this development, quantum computing gained considerable attention. According to the industry trade publication, The Quantum Insider, approximately 600 companies, more than 30 national laboratories and government agencies around the world are developing quantum computing technology. Among these companies are US based tech giants such as Amazon, Google, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Hitachi, International Business Machines (IBM), Intel, and Microsoft, as well as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Oxford University, and Los Alamos National Laboratory. A number of other countries have made significant investments in quantum computing technologies, including the United Kingdom (UK), Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Israel, Japan, India and Russia. It is projected that the global quantum computing market size will reach USD 4,375 Billion in 2028 from USD 866 Million in 2023, at a compound annual growth rate of 38.3% (Markets and Markets, 2022). Some companies already released their first quantum computers for commercial use (D-Wave, n.d.) (IBM, n.d.) (Microsoft, n.d.) (Quantinuum, n.d.). Quantum computing can be potentially used in industries such as pharmaceuticals, healthcare, manufacturing, cybersecurity, banking and finance, as well as for tasks such as integer factorization and simulations (Markets and Markets, 2023).

Traditional computers utilize electrical impulses to encode data in bits 1s and 0s. A quantum computer, on the other hand, uses subatomic particles, such as electrons or photons, to calculate. These particles can exist in more than one state (i.e., 1 and 0) at the same time (superposition) with quantum bits (qubits) (see Figure 1). This enables quantum computers to perform a variety of computations simultaneously. Moreover, quantum entanglement links the states of qubits, allowing instantaneous influence over large distances. This allows quantum computers to perform extraordinarily complex tasks. As a result of quantum superposition and entanglement, computational capabilities have been vastly enhanced, offering solutions to previously insurmountable problems.

Figure 1.

Simplistic view of bit and qubit. A bit can be either 0 or 1 (Left). A qubit is in a superposition of states . A qubit state can reduce to states , as special cases (middle). The two qubits in entangled state are linked to each other, implying that the properties of one qubit can be inferred by looking at the other, whatever the distance between them (Gill, et al., 2022).