Signal Protocol Gets Post-Quantum Update

The Signal Foundation has released an update to its Signal Protocol, which is designed to prepare for “the fall of cryptographic protocols” due to quantum advancements, reports Dan Goodin.

“The Signal Protocol is a key ingredient in the Signal, Google RCS, and WhatsApp messengers, which collectively have more than 1 billion users. It’s the engine that provides end-to-end encryption, meaning messages encrypted with the apps can be decrypted only by the recipients and no one else, including the platforms enabling the service,” Goodin explains.

However, he notes, “there will come a day when many of the most widely used forms of encryption will die at the hands of quantum computing.” Thus, a new class of post-quantum cryptography (PQC) is being developed. The specific PQC added to the Signal Protocol is called PQXDH.

You can learn more at Ars Technica.