The Quantum imperative: Super-secure communications will protect banking and military information from hacking

Russian scientists have developed a software and hardware complex for secure data transmission in 4G/5G mobile networks based on quantum key distribution technology. The equipment allows you to create a communication channel that is almost impossible to crack, so it will be in demand in all areas where information security issues come to the fore — from strategic valuable data to financial services. Russian banks are ready to implement the technology as soon as the requirements for it are officially formulated.

Quantum key distribution

Skoltech specialists (VEB GroupRussian Federation), by order of Russian Railways, created a software and hardware complex for secure data transmission in mobile networks using quantum key distribution technologies. This is the first equipment in Russia that allows transmitting information encrypted in this way in 5G networks.

The development was first demonstrated at the conference "Microelectronic Systems – 2026". The complex includes a server part for providing communication between users, two 4G/5G base stations, as well as subscriber devices based on the Aurora and Android operating systems.

— Such complexes can be used in a wide range of industries where increased requirements are placed on the protection of transmitted data and the resilience of the communication infrastructure to future cyber threats. First of all, we are talking about the transport industry and critical information infrastructure facilities, including railway control systems, dispatch centers, digital monitoring platforms and mobile service channels," said Alexey Frolov, Professor, Director of the Skoltech Wireless Communications and Internet of Things Project Center.

The technology is also of interest to energy, industry, the financial sector and government agencies, where preparations are already underway for the transition to post-quantum methods of information protection, he added.

Modern data encryption systems use cryptographic algorithms to ensure confidentiality, for which effective hacking methods using classical computers are unknown in practice. However, in 1994, mathematician Peter Shore proposed a quantum algorithm capable of solving the problems underlying a number of widely used cryptographic methods, provided there is a sufficiently powerful quantum computer. One of the approaches to reducing such risks is considered to be quantum key distribution.

The technology is based on the fundamental laws of quantum mechanics. Any attempt to intercept or measure quantum states inevitably changes their parameters and introduces distortions into the communication channel, which allows legitimate participants to detect interference. Thus, the security of the CRC is ensured not by the computational complexity of mathematical problems, but by the physical properties of quantum systems.

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At the same time, keys must not only be generated and distributed, but also ensure their secure delivery to end devices, secure storage, regular updating, and correct integration into application services and communication protocols. Therefore, integrated solutions combining quantum key distribution technologies with existing data transmission networks and user services are in demand.

The complex developed at Skoltech receives quantum-distributed keys using the ProtoQa protocol from the KRK system and ensures their delivery to subscriber devices for secure Internet communication and user data transmission. Supported information types include text messages, audio and video messages, photos, files, as well as voice and video calls.

Implementation in the financial sector

Russian banks have already announced their readiness to introduce quantum technologies for secure data transmission. According to the VTB press service, the organization is interested in using the KRK technology and was one of the first in the financial market to test its application. The keys were transmitted over a fiber-optic line between data centers.

— Quantum channels are considered more secure than conventional network connections and provide a higher level of protection for transmitted data. This is especially true with the emergence of new cyber threats related to the development of AI and quantum computing technologies. We are confident that quantum encryption is the future. Therefore, right now it is critically important to explore quantum technologies in their field, find application scenarios for their application and assess the potential and future effects, including financial ones," the press service noted.

As soon as the regulatory requirements for the use of the technology are formulated, the bank expressed its readiness to implement it.

— We are ready to implement with caution in order to securely transfer critical data. Such developments can significantly increase the confidentiality of the transmitted information and protect it from disclosure or modification," said Igor Kosoburov, Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of Zenit Bank.

The technology of quantum key distribution is already being used by some countries to protect strategic information, said Dmitry Kuzyakin, chief designer of the Central Research Institute.

— Today, this technology is the main global security trend. In the West, it is used to encrypt communications with strategic nuclear submarines. And China has built the world's first quantum network between Earth and space. They launched a special Mo-tzu satellite and were able to exchange encrypted data with a ground station in Tibet at a distance of more than 500 km. This proved that secure quantum communication can be extended over any distance," he added.

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According to him, quantum communication now seems to us to be something complicated, cosmic and very expensive. But this is the way of any technology. In just five to seven years, such protection will become a mass standard, and with its help everything will be encrypted - from state secrets to our daily access to the Internet. It's great that Russia is not lagging behind here, but is putting these technologies of the future on an industrial track, the expert added.

As Anton Averyanov, CEO of the ST IT group of companies, TechNet NTI market expert, noted, for an ordinary user, the effect of introducing such technologies will be almost invisible at first. People will not see the "quantum Internet" in the everyday sense. But in the long run, this could mean more secure calls, messages, corporate communications, and cloud services.