The French government used “post-quantum” cryptography for the first time between Washington and Paris, President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday, November 30.
“One hundred years after the first diplomatic telegram between the French Embassy in the United States and Paris, France transmitted its first diplomatic telegram in post-quantum cryptography!” the Head of State said on his Twitter account. This technology is capable of dealing with the most complex decryption attempts
International cooperation for the development of the sector
In a statement, the Foreign Ministry said it had become “essential to develop and master encryption technologies to protect sensitive communications in the future.”
Thus, on Wednesday, November 30, a rather innocuous message was sent, in this case a memorandum of cooperation between Paris and Washington in quantum matters, “as part of the Quantum plan announced by the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron in January 2021.”
The approach also comes after the G7 summit in Munich in June, which encouraged its members “to cooperate on the strategic issues of developing quantum industries and post-quantum cryptography solutions,” the Quai d’Orsay said. “Faced with this systemic threat, the initiative heralds the evolution of critical digital infrastructures in France,” he added.
150 million euros for the Quantum plan
The government will present at the end of the first quarter of 2023, “a first action plan, integrating a methodology and a schedule for the migration to post-quantum cryptography of these critical infrastructures.”
Quantum technologies exploit the amazing properties of matter on the scale of the infinitely small (atom, ion, photon, electron, etc.). Over time, they should make it possible to build computers with computing capabilities that rival those of today’s most powerful supercomputers.
In France, some 150 million euros will be allocated to post-quantum cryptography within the Quantum plan announced in January 2021. This plan, which involves an investment of 1.8 billion euros, aims to place France in third place in the world in this field, for behind China and the United States. The White House launched its own project last May.
Source: BFM TV
