The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has released a new report on the transition to the much faster and more powerful world of quantum computing.
The report provides critical infrastructure and government network owners and operators an overview of the potential impacts of quantum computing, and recommends actions they should take now to begin preparing for the transition, a news release said.
“While post-quantum computing is expected to produce significant benefits, we must take action now to manage potential risks, including the ability to break public key encryption that U.S. networks rely on to secure sensitive information,” Mona Harrington, acting assistant director of CISA's National Risk Management Center, said in a statement. Critical infrastructure and government leaders must be proactive and begin preparing for the transition to post-quantum cryptography now.”
In March 2021, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas "outlined his vision for cybersecurity resilience and identified the transition to post-quantum encryption as a priority," the news release said.
Quantum computing promises faster-computing speed and power but could also create hazards in infrastructure, CISA said.
For that reason, the agency is encouraging the owners of the nation's infrastructure to follow a roadmap with guidance provided in the new report.
"The roadmap includes actionable steps organizations should take, such as conducting an inventory of their current cryptographic technologies, creating acquisition policies regarding post-quantum cryptography and educating their organization’s workforce about the upcoming transition," the news release said.
