Ethical Hackers Who Break India’s First Quantum Communication Link In New Delhi To Receive 10 Lakh: Telecom Minister
Union Minister of Communications Ashwini Vaishnaw said on March 27 that India's first quantum computing-based telecommunications network link is now operational in New Delhi.
At the first International Quantum Communication Conclave, being held in New Delhi from March 27 to 28, 2023, Union Minister of Communications Ashwini Vaishnaw said that India's first quantum computing-based telecommunications network link is now operational in the national capital.
On the first day of the conclave, Vaishnaw said that the quantum computing-based telecommunications network link is now operational between Sanchar Bhawan and the National Informatics Centre office, which is located in the Central Government Offices (CGO) Complex in New Delhi, news agency PTI reported.
Vaishnaw also announced that ethical hackers who can break the encryption of the quantum secure communication link will be awarded a prize money of Rs 10 lakh.
The system is developed by the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT), a telecommunications technology development centre under the Department of Telecommunications, Government of India.
Vaishnaw also inaugurated a small exhibition of quantum computing firms and invited those firms to run pilot projects for communications networks and the Indian Railways.
The minister said that today, quantum computing is the new frontier of telecommunications technology for security purposes, news agency ANI reported.
Vaishnaw explained that during the conclave, which will continue till March 28, many collaborations will take place.
The minister said that over the past eight years, the entire telecommunications sector has transformed under the vision and focus of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
What is quantum computing?
Quantum computing is a rapidly emerging new-generation technology that involves a class of computers 158 million times faster than the most sophisticated supercomputer in the world, and harnesses the laws of quantum mechanics to solve problems too difficult for classical computers, and deliver huge leaps forward in processing power. Quantum mechanics is a branch of physics that explains nature on the scale of atoms, and has resulted in advances such as transistors, lasers, and magnetic resonance imaging, since its emergence in the early 1990s. While classical computers generate bits, a quantum computer has the ability to generate and manipulate quantum bits, or qubits.
Bits are electrical or optical pulses representing zeroes (0s) and ones (1s). Most computers work with zeroes and ones, also known as binary information.
A qubit is a quantum bit, the counterpart in quantum computing to the binary digit of classical computing, and is the basic unit of a quantum computer. A qubit is made out of a quantum system, like an electron or photon.
A traditional bit can only be a one or zero. However, a qubit can be a one, a zero, or both at the same time, according to a study published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).
Since a qubit can be a one and a zero at the same time, a quantum computer does not have to wait for one process to end before it can begin another.
ALSO READ | Quantum Computing: What Is It? How Is It Different From Classical Computing? How Does It Work?
The importance of quantum security
In recent years, cyber crimes have increased to a great extent, making cybersecurity an utmost priority for the technology and telecommunications industries. While online communication makes people's lives easier, it comes with a lot of drawbacks, which include the lack of secure communication.
The traditional key-based cryptography has become vulnerable for cyber attacks because hackers have adequate computing power to retrieve the key from the encrypted text in real-time.
The most shocking aspect of communication prone to cyber attacks is that the person sending or receiving the message is unaware of the lack of security.
Therefore, in the cases where hackers or intruders retrieve encrypted data, an alert on the infringement sent to the receiver can help prevent further damage.
Such alerts can be sent with the help of quantum computing.
While quantum computers provide the computing power required to break key-based secure communications systems, post-quantum cryptography can protect channels from cyber attacks.
At the first International Quantum Communication Conclave, experts will deliver key insights on quantum computing. The conclave is an opportunity for collaboration among participants to enable them to work on advanced quantum technologies.
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