Companies forge alliance for quantum-secure satellite communications

Partisia, Squareroot8 and NuSpace, a company specialising in IoT Connectivity Services and Satellite-As-A-Service have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to advance the future of secure communications. By incorporating a Quantum Random Number Generator (QRNG) placed in a satellite in space with advanced cryptography, this partnership aims to deliver a fully quantum-proof solution for utilising the satellite to provide encrypted correlated randomness to perform Multi-Party Computation (MPC).

"By integrating quantum-safe cryptography with QRNG-equipped satellites, this partnership delivers a revolutionary solution for secure communication and multiparty computation - ensuring privacy, efficiency, and quantum-proof security for the future of data processing," says Mark Medum Bundgaard, chief product officer at Partisia.

A QRNG can create highly secure random keys. A satellite equipped with a QRNG generates a random key and securely sends it to two parties, enabling them to communicate privately using post-quantum cryptography. This setup ensures a quantum-safe encryption method.

Beyond secure communication, the satellite can also preprocess data for MPC. MPC calculations often require specific secret values that must remain private. Instead of generating these values throughout computation, we can precompute random values and store intermediate results. Later, when real inputs arrive, the preprocessed data speeds up the final calculation.

For example, in some MPC protocols, preprocessing can take six days and 23 hours, while the actual computation only takes one hour. This is because most of the data exchange happens during preprocessing. If a secure satellite continuously generates and stores these values, the complete process becomes much more efficient.

Satellites are difficult to access physically, unlike hardware servers on the ground. Preprocessed computations can be performed weeks in advance, decreasing real-time processing delays. The satellite never sees the actual data – it only generates random preprocessed values.

By employing QRNG-equipped satellites, a trusted, quantum-secure environment for faster and safer cryptographic computations can be created. The initial data processing stage is preprocessing, where raw data is prepared for analysis. It improves efficiency, accuracy, and security in various applications, including cryptography and machine learning.

This process is often time-consuming and costly. However, imagine a secure, quantum-proof machine that generates preprocessed 'false' numbers. When real data needs to be processed, these false numbers can be combined with the real ones for faster calculations, lowering processing time by up to 80%.

"Preprocessing with QRNG-equipped satellites transforms secure computation by drastically reducing processing time, enhancing efficiency, and ensuring quantum-safe security - leveraging space as the ultimate trusted environment for data privacy and cryptographic advances." says Dr Goh Koon Tong, chief technologist and co-founder from Squareroot8 Technologies."