Thales and SK Telecom unveil innovative Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) solution to strengthen protection for 5G users
Thales and SK Telecom (SKT), South Korea’s largest mobile operator, have trialled a new Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) solution on 5G networks that significantly enhances protection for subscribers’ identities and privacy. This pioneering development showcases advanced mobile cryptographic expertise, using Thales’s 5G PQC SIM cards operating within SKT’s 5G standalone network environment.
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Protecting subscriber identities - now and in the future
The joint solution from Thales and SKT employs upgraded cryptography to anonymise and conceal the digital identities of 5G network users. On the device side, identities are secured through Thales’s 5G SIM. The initiative is designed not only to protect against current attempts at identity theft but also resist future attacks by cybercriminals using quantum computers.
Experts predict that practical quantum computing will emerge from around 2035, delivering processing power capable of solving mathematical problems that are effectively impossible with today’s technology. These include breaking the encryption currently used to protect subscribers’ identities.
NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) is at the forefront of global efforts to standardise PQC algorithms. For this real-world trial, SKT and Thales employed the NIST-endorsed CRYSTALS-Kyber PQC algorithm, ensuring full alignment with industry-wide initiatives to strengthen privacy in the post-quantum era.