The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has chosen Florida Atlantic University's (FAU) Hamming Quasi-Cyclic (HQC) for standardisation in its Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) project.
HQC is designed for secure key exchange, ensuring secure communication channels.
HQC is a next-generation cryptographic solution that safeguards sensitive digital communications against quantum computing threats.
It will be the second key-encapsulation mechanism (KEM) to be standardised by NIST.
FAU is the only US university involved among all the authors of the two winning KEM schemes selected by NIST.
HQC is designed to withstand attacks from quantum computers, making it a post-quantum cryptographic solution.
The PQC initiative aims to develop new quantum cryptographic standards that can withstand the potential threats posed by quantum computers.
The PQC initiative ensures data protection, digital signatures, and secure communications function securely in the quantum era, providing a foundation for developing quantum-resistant cryptographic algorithms for current and future digital infrastructures.