QuantLR, an Israel-based Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) company, and MedOne, a leading Israeli data center service provider, have announced the successful operation of QuantLR’s QKD system with MedOne’s Data Center infrastructure between the cities of Tel Aviv and Petah Tikva.
Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) is the only proven technology that provides the ultimate level of security for data in transit, including security against any attack or eavesdropping attempts by contemporary, future, classical or quantum-based computers. Another threat that is secured by QKD is a “hack now- decrypt later” attack where the attacker collects the data now and decrypt in a later stage. This puts a sense of urgency in the implementation of QKD.
This quantum-based technology is especially important in a data center environment to secure the information to and from the data center, between data centers, and within the data center itself.
The announcement comes following the recent successful test that was conducted between the MedOne Tel Aviv and MedOne Petah Tikva facilities, over a distance of more than 35km (21.7 miles). Earlier this year QuantLR managed to exchange keys over longer distances.
The test was led by Dr. Nitzan Livneh, QuantLR’s CTO, and Eli Saig, MedOne’s CTO.
A single fiber strand was used to carry the quantum information as well as C-band data channels, enabling quantum-safe communication for clients without dark fiber. The system created more than ten 256bit symmetric encryption keys per second, without any flaws.
A QKD solution at an affordable price is critical to solve a major upcoming problem: today’s network security relies on public key cryptography that is highly vulnerable to cracking. The vast majority of encryption keys in the commercial world are distributed via PKI, but new algorithms and advances in quantum computing will soon provide the capabilities to crack most PKI instances, including RSA and Diffie Hellman methods. This issue is well-known, and Quantum Key Distribution is widely considered the most secure solution for long-term data security, as conventional security solutions approach their end-of-life.
“We are delighted to collaborate with a leading data center service provider such as MedOne. Data Centers are a very important use case for QKD and we see an increasing demand from leading players in this market,” notes Dr. Nitzan Livneh, CTO of QuantLR
“Data security has become the most important aspect in a data center offering, and we are planning to be the first data center service provider worldwide that will offer a QKD solution to secure its clients’ data” noted Ronnie Sadeh, CEO of MedOne.