Group 7 Justin Jones Ashley Robinett Jonathan Bull Quantum Cryptography Group 7 Justin Jones Ashley Robinett Jonathan Bull

Quantum Cryptography Key Words Classical Cryptography Quantum Physics Photons Eavesdropping Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle

Quantum Cryptography Classical Cryptography- uses mathematical techniques to restrict eavesdroppers Quantum Cryptography- uses quantum physics to restrict eavesdroppers Quantum Physics- the branch of physics that deals with atomic and subatomic particles and the energy of atoms

Quantum Cryptography Photon- one of the elementary particles whose interactions with electrons and atomic nuclei account for the features of matter Eavesdropping- the intercepting of conversations by unintended recipients Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle- tells us that merely observing a quantum object alters it

Quantum Cryptography What It Is Developed by Stephen Weisner in the early 1970’s In 1991, the first prototype was made operable only over a distance of 32 centimeters (February 2006) Hoi-Kwong Lo’s study describes the first experimental proof of a quantum decoy technique to encrypt data over a fiber optic cable

Quantum Cryptography Varies the intensity of photons and introduces “photonic decoys” Photons carry complex encryption keys through fiber optic cables Afterwards, a second broadcast tells the receiving computer which photons carried the signal and which ones were decoys

Quantum Cryptography If a hacker tries to eavesdrop on the data stream to try and figure out the encryption key, the mere act of eavesdropping changes the decoys- which tells the computer that the data has been tampered with

Quantum Cryptography Benefits Allows the transmission of sensitive information (banking records, personal info, etc.) Allows more security for online banking Can be implemented now because the experiment was done with a commercial device

Quantum Cryptography Benefits Increases the distance that information can sent up to 100 km Confuses hackers and eavesdroppers Merely looking electronically at the photon keys will automatically change their shape and render them useless in unlocking the information Both sender and receiver can know if someone is eavesdropping or not