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Quantum codes introduced in real world
USING properties of quantum physics, the technique encrypts data with keys that reveal if they have been intercepted or tampered with. Quantum cryptography has emerged from the laboratory and into the real world.
US company Magiq and Swiss firm ID Quantique have already sold hardware to several customers keen to protect data with quantum cryptography.
Governments and armed forces are thought to be among the first users of the technology. Encryption usually involves scrambling data with long numeric keys that stop other people reading it.
The information inside the message is effectively kept secure because of the time it would take an eavesdropper to sort through all possible keys used to scramble the data. But quantum cryptography scrambles data in a different way by using the strange properties of the quantum world to guarantee that keys have been swapped securely. Information about the key is encoded onto a single photon. Quantum physics guarantees that the properties of the photon will change if anyone intercepts it and tries to read the information off it. Once two parties have swapped a key that they know to be safe they can be sure that the messages they are sending each other are secure.
“Once you can guarantee the key is secret, you can use that for encrypting the data or for any other cryptographic tasks you want to do,” said Dr Andrew Shields, leader of the Quantum Information Group at Toshiba’s Cambridge laboratory.
Bob Gelfond, chief executive at Magiq, said the improvements in security offered by quantum cryptography were proving popular even though its QPN Security Gateway cost between $50,000 and $100,000. Once connected to a fibre-optic network the Magiq hardware allows companies to set up a virtual network they can use to send data encoded with quantum keys.
Although the technology is already in use, there are still some limitations to iron out. For instance there is a limit to the distance that photons can travel before they lose coherence which makes it impossible to read key information. The current record for long-distance quantum key distribution is 120km.
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Auto-patching software
Microsoft plans to release a new version of its Windows XP software that automatically downloads and installs software patches onto personal computers, one of the company’s most aggressive moves to promote Internet safety.
Starting in the middle of this year, WinXP customers will be able to download a new service pack that includes the automatic installation function.
The software will also include a stronger internet firewall, new forms of protection against computer viruses and software that blocks internet pop-up advertising. The upgrade is meant to make it easier for the millions of home computer users who surf the internet but are not computer-security experts.
With the upgrade, customers give their consent once and Microsoft will download and install patches for them, he added. The software is also designed to get security patches installed on Microsoft computers before hackers can figure out how to take advantage of software holes.
Microsoft regularly releases software fixes for security flaws, but those same fixes can provide hackers with a blueprint for attack.
Infineon chip in development
IBM and Samsung Electronics are hooking up to design chips based on the cutting-edge 65-nanometer (nm) technology. This alliance extends an existing partnership among IBM, Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing and Infineon.
The companies will benefit by being able to get their next-generation products to market faster, he added. For Samsung, that could mean anything from HDTV sets to cell phones, as well as devices not yet on the drawing board.
A separate agreement with IBM gives Samsung licence rights to 90-nm CMOS logic technology. The firm has plans to introduce this logic technology in its highly integrated system-on-chip product line, which includes televisions, DVD players and mobile devices. The new chips are targeted for next-generation gaming devices, among other multimedia-intensive products. — Sci-tec World Report
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