This site was initiated by the research groups [Applied Cyber-Security](https://fbi.h-da.de/forschung/arbeitsgruppen/applied-cyber-security-darmstadt) and [User Centered Security](https://fbi.h-da.de/index.php?id=764) of [Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences](https://h-da.de/), funded by [ATHENE National Research Center for Applied Cybersecurity](https://www.athene-center.de).
Post-quantum cryptographic schemes have been under development for several years. Very soon there will be standardized post-quantum algorithms replacing the previous standards, which will eventually become obsolete. In order for quantum-resistant cryptographic Measures to be utilized, one needs more than simply developing secure post-quantum algorithms. The migration towards PQC poses great challenges on different levels. Those are not only restricted to the integration into existing protocols, but also include performance issues such as hardware specifications and memory usage, and especially the uncertainty of long term security of the new algorithm families. Moreover, a major challenge lies within finding suitable means of communicating and negotiating new algorithms and protocol parameters between different IT-systems. This leads to the urgent need for establishing the concept of crypto-agility, so as to be prepared for the rapid changes of cryptography, and insure the compatibility in all possible scenarios and settings.
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Post-quantum cryptographic schemes have been under development for several years. Very soon there will be standardized post-quantum algorithms replacing the previous standards, which will eventually become obsolete. In order for quantum-resistant cryptographic Measures to be utilized, one needs more than simply developing secure post-quantum algorithms. The migration towards PQC poses great challenges on different levels. Those are not only restricted to the integration into existing protocols, but also include performance issues such as hardware specifications and memory usage, and especially the uncertainty of long term security of the new algorithm families. Moreover, a major challenge lies within finding suitable means of communicating and negotiating new algorithms and protocol parameters between different IT-systems. This leads to the urgent need for establishing the concept of crypto-agility, so as to be prepared for the rapid changes of cryptography, and insure the compatibility in all possible scenarios and settings.
This site was initiated by the research groups [Applied Cyber-Security](https://fbi.h-da.de/forschung/arbeitsgruppen/applied-cyber-security-darmstadt) and [User Centered Security](https://fbi.h-da.de/index.php?id=764) of [Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences](https://h-da.de/), funded by [ATHENE National Research Center for Applied Cybersecurity](https://www.athene-center.de).
Our project team deals with the challenges of PQC migration, and searches for answers to the open questions in this field. We build upon our findings and analysis towards finding suitable solutions for achieving said migration and establishing crypto-agility in IT-systems. Our goal is to develop such solutions through design, strategies, frameworks and interfaces.
On the one hand we conduct research on the newest findings regarding cryptographic measures and their development state. This research is managed and updated continuously through a community-based website that will further gather the newest developments regarding PQC research. On the other hand, we Contribute to cutting edge post quantum cryptography technologies and it's applications, as we transform our theoretical and scientific findings into practical solutions, such as our recently developed cryptographic API (eUCRITE). Further, we intend to start the development of an automated tool for the detection of cryptographic components in IT-systems, that could simplify the migration in networks and IT-infrastructures through analyzing and identifying the existing cryptographic measures.
The [eUCRITE API](https://use-a-pqclib.h-da.io/eucrite-documentation/) is a PQC library interface, that provides quantum-resistant cryptographic schemes in abstract manner. It provides not only PQC-based encryption, but also signature schemes. The end-user has the choice between three different security levels based on the strenght and performance of the chosen algorithems. This abstraction aims at supporting crypt-agility and is expected to make using PQC-schemes easier [[Zei20]](../../refs#zei20). Collaborations on our cryptographic API, and a special update mechanism for said API are also under development.
A collection of survey papers and references dealing with general challenges and recommendations regarding the migration to post-quantum cryptography and cryptographic agility.
