Abstract
The existence of quantum computers and Shor’s algorithm poses an imminent threat to classical public-key cryptosystems. These cryptosystems are currently used for the exchange of keys between servers and clients over the Internet. The Internet of Things (IoT) is the next step in the evolution of the Internet, and it involves the connection of millions of low-powered and resource-constrained devices to the network. Because quantum computers are becoming more capable, the creation of a new cryptographic standard that cannot be compromised by them is indispensable. There are several current proposals of quantum-resistant or post-quantum algorithms that are being considered for future standards. Given that the IoT is increasing in popularity, and given its resource-constrained nature, it is worth adapting those new standards to IoT devices. In this work, we study some post-quantum cryptosystems that could be suitable for IoT devices, adapting them to work with current cryptography and communication software, and conduct a performance measurement on them, obtaining guidelines for selecting the best for different applications in resource-constrained hardware. Our results show that many of these algorithms can be efficiently executed in current IoT hardware, providing adequate protection from the attacks that quantum computers will eventually be capable of.
Highlights
The Internet of Things (IoT) is the step in the evolution of the Internet, which will create an ecosystem for connecting all sorts of devices with the objective of gathering data from the environment
To achieve the goal of assisting in decision-making, the IoT has several stages [1,2,3]: sensing, which refers to the gathering and transfer of data to other platforms and devices; communication, which defines the set of technologies and ways of communication among the different devices involved; computation, which involves processing units and software that provides the computational capability to IoT devices; services, which provide all the required functionality for the IoT to work correctly; and semantics, the stage at which knowledge is extracted from data
We demonstrate that post-quantum cryptosystems can be integrated in IoT devices in their current form
Summary
The Internet of Things (IoT) is the step in the evolution of the Internet, which will create an ecosystem for connecting all sorts of devices with the objective of gathering data from the environment. This ecosystem will assist in decision-making processes, and should operate as autonomously as possible. The most common architecture for IoT comprises five layers, from the object Layer at the bottom to the business Layer at the top, as described in [1,2]. To achieve the goal of assisting in decision-making, the IoT has several stages [1,2,3]: sensing, which refers to the gathering and transfer of data to other platforms and devices; communication, which defines the set of technologies and ways of communication among the different devices involved; computation, which involves processing units and software that provides the computational capability to IoT devices; services, which provide all the required functionality for the IoT to work correctly; and semantics, the stage at which knowledge is extracted from data.
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