SK Broadband announced on the 26th that it will launch a dedicated line business for post-quantum cryptography (PQC). This project involves the establishment of a PQC dedicated line for Korea Electric Power Corporation, marking the first contract win since the commercial service launch in 2023 and signaling the official start of the domestic quantum cryptography communication era.
Quantum cryptography communication technology is divided into quantum key distribution (QKD) and post-quantum cryptography (PQC). While QKD distributes encryption keys based on hardware, PQC uses mathematical problems that are difficult for quantum computers to solve, providing service without distance constraints.
SK Broadband explained that the PQC dedicated line played a crucial role in Korea Electric Power Corporation's contract win and that quantum cryptography communication technology is gaining attention in the public sector due to the acceleration of quantum computer development. In particular, it is projected that the introduction of quantum cryptography communication will expand in industries where security is crucial, such as finance, medical, and defense.
SK Broadband stated that it is preparing for future hacking threats from quantum computers through the PQC dedicated line, safely protecting critical data of Korea Electric Power Corporation. In particular, the PTN encryption transmission equipment, co-developed with the domestic transmission equipment company WooriNet, applies the PQC algorithm to protect important data of public institutions in real-time while ensuring smooth network performance.
Jang Si-hoon, head of public customers at SK Broadband, noted, "The establishment of this PQC dedicated line is an important case that has occurred in a public enterprise," and stated, "We will continuously strengthen our technological competitiveness to ensure that the adoption of QKD and PQC can spread across various industries such as finance, medical, and defense in the future."
Meanwhile, SK Broadband, along with SK Telecom, has been selected as the top contractor for a national project related to quantum cryptography technology led by the National Information Society Agency (NIA) for five consecutive years, and is leading the domestic quantum cryptography communication technology by applying QKD to the national convergence network backbone for the first time in the world in 2022.