DOD probes industry about software-defined encryption as US scurries to get quantum-safe

The Pentagon is searching for interim software-only cryptographic solutions that require zero hardware changes to protect military systems during its transition to post-quantum cryptography.

A request for information released on Thursday sets clear, operational baselines for vendors and signals that the Defense Department is executing on its nascent campaign to prepare for existential quantum threats.

“The desired solution should provide utility-based, data packet-level cryptographic protection that aligns with the government’s PQC migration strategy and implementation plan, scheduled for on or before December 31, 2029,” officials wrote in the RFI.

Quantum information science applies complex phenomena happening at atomic and subatomic levels to store, move, manipulate, process, and measure data and information. 

Once they can be exploited at-scale, potentially in the near future, quantum technologies are expected to spark disruptive advancements, like encryption-breaking algorithms and unhackable communication networks.

DOD’s PQC strategy — published by the chief information officer in June, the day after the White House issued new quantum policies — outlines the department’s modern scheme to prepare “for a future battle space enabled by Cryptographically Relevant Quantum Computers.”