In a major step toward securing its communications networks with quantum technologies, the European Union (EU) has commissioned a consortium dubbed Nostradamus to build the test infrastructure for quantum key distribution (QKD). The move is expected to enable the evaluation of QKD devices from European manufacturers.

The consortium is led by Deutsche Telekom (DT), a digitalization partner for the EU and a network provider for several EU institutions. Other partners include French tech company Thales, the Austrian Institute of Technology and experts from across industry and academia.

“The €16 million (around $17.4 million) Nostradamus project has just been launched by the European Commission to provide Europe, in four years' time, with a center of excellence able to assess the security of these technologies against the most advanced attacks and threats, which only nation-states or state-sponsored actors would be able to implement,” Joan Mazenc, head of licensed security evaluation facilities (ITSEF) at Thales, told SDxCentral.

This latest quantum push from the EU aims to pave the way for developing and implementing the European Quantum Communication Infrastructure (EuroQCI), a secure pan-European communication network based on quantum technology.

The infrastructure is intended to provide more security for data centers, communications networks and critical infrastructure such as hospitals and power plants via fiber optics and satellite.

The future encrypted EU satellite network IRIS2 (Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security by Satellite) is also based on EuroQCI. IRIS2 will provide governments with communications services and network critical infrastructure, and businesses and organizations with fast satellite Internet, according to DT.

“Over the past four years, Europe has invested heavily in quantum technologies with the EuroQCI project, investing nearly €180 million (around $196 million), to develop a robust scientific and industrial ecosystem, foster the emergence of national champions and enable the forthcoming implementation of a secure communications network between member states,” Mazenc said.

The overall goal of this Nostradamus consortium is to prepare the EU for quantum threats, which requires offering security certification services to QKD product manufacturers, Mazenc noted.

QKD is a technology that uses the principles of quantum mechanics to secure communication and data exchange. The keys for decoding information are sent using single photons — quantum light particles. Any eavesdropping attempt to intercept these photons leaves traces in their physical state.

Mazenc said that the QKD device certifications are awarded by national security agencies, based on security evaluation results provided by licensed security evaluation facilities (ITSEF). It assures that the awarded system is robust against hackers with a holistic approach.

“For QKD devices, in addition to standard threats and attack vectors, hackers may target the quantum link between two devices,” he said. “Evaluating the security of such link, relying on quantum physics principles, is new, requires a dedicated lab and new approaches.”

To address these quantum threats, Thales will build a laboratory to simulate and analyze attacks targeting the quantum link, as part of the consortium.

“This laboratory will identify methods for evaluating ground-based quantum key devices, based on fiber optic technology,” Mazenc noted.

He added the lab will be designed and developed in Toulouse, France, which is the heart of the European space ecosystem. Around 2027, the lab will be transferred to a location that the European Commission is still keeping secret.