Communications of the ACM
A Proactive Approach to Ensuring Long-Term Cybersecurity
The European Union is funding two projects devoted to developing new cybersecurity paradigms, architectures, and software.
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As the cybersecurity threat landscape continues to evolve, the European Union is funding two projects devoted to developing new security paradigms, architectures, and software.
Secure Hardware-Software Architectures for Robust Computing Systems (SHARCS) and Post-quantum cryptography for long-term security (PQCRYPTO) have exposed weaknesses in current security practices, including public-key algorithms (RSA) and elliptic curves, when protecting data stored on quantum computers. Hacking experts demonstrated this threat by using the Flip Feng Shui (FFS) technique to alter the memory of a cloud-based virtual machine, which would enable an attacker to crack the virtual machine's keys or install malware undetected. A server also can be ordered to install malicious software and allow logins by unauthorized users.
Researchers used the FFS method to weaken one host's public keys with only one bit and install malware presented as a software update. To mitigate FFS and other threats, SHARCS is designing, building, and testing secure applications and services capable of achieving end-to-end security, while the PQCRYPTO team is working on cryptographic systems that are secure against long-term threats presented by quantum computing.
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