2024-02-25 22:01:47
Apple is seeking to develop additional methods to protect the iMessage messaging application from hacking attacks that use quantum computing techniques, which could destroy current encryption and protection methods.
Although it still takes years to develop hacking tools using quantum computing, Apple, which produces iPhone smartphones, says it needs to start preparing to confront this danger now.
Apple fears that hackers will try to take advantage of the huge amounts of data that are transferred through currently secured communications services, and then attempt to break the existing protection for this data later. A new protocol called “PQ3” was designed to secure sent messages against such future attacks.
It is noteworthy that the iMessage application and other chat applications, such as Signal and WhatsApp, mainly use end-to-end encryption techniques, which makes the content of exchanged messages appear in the form of simple text on the devices of the parties to the conversation, without it also appearing on the devices of the service provider itself.
Existing tools to break the encryption of this correspondence require huge amounts of resources. However, experts believe that within 10 or 15 years, computers equipped with quantum computing technology could be used to quickly break encryption.
A new additional security mechanism for the era of quantum computers includes a new technology that constantly changes encryption keys between devices.
Apple intends to provide the PQ3 protocol in new versions of its operating systems for its devices, such as iOS 17.4.
The company says that iMessage will be the first chat service to reach this level of protection against quantum computing attacks. The Signal application announced earlier that it seeks to develop means of protection against these potential threats.
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