In the ever-evolving world of cybersecurity, the shift toward post-quantum cryptography (PQC) is no longer a distant concern. As quantum computers approach their full potential, organizations must prepare for a future where traditional encryption algorithms may become vulnerable.
Cloudflare, a leader in internet security, is ensuring their services are quantum-safe today. With the recent release of Cloudflare One’s post-quantum Secure Access Service Edge (SASE), they are leading the charge to protect enterprise networks in the post-quantum era.
The Quantum-Ready Future: Why It Matters Now
Quantum computing poses a serious challenge to traditional encryption. Classical systems like RSA and Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) could soon be broken by quantum computers.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has set a 2030 deadline to transition from these traditional algorithms. However, the timeline for businesses is shorter. By 2024, the need to adopt post-quantum cryptography will be urgent as data could already be at risk from a “harvest-now, decrypt-later” attack.
Cloudflare is committed to integrating PQC across its platforms. This ensures customer data remains secure, even with quantum threats on the horizon. The launch of Cloudflare One, featuring industry-first hybrid ML-KEM encryption, marks a key milestone.
Cloudflare One: Quantum-Safe SASE with Hybrid ML-KEM
Cloudflare One now supports hybrid ML-KEM encryption. This makes it the first SASE platform to fully integrate post-quantum encryption into its Secure Web Gateway and WAN infrastructure. The platform also supports quantum-safe encryption across multiple on-ramps and off-ramps, including Cloudflare IPsec and the Cloudflare One Appliance.nce.
Hybrid ML-KEM encryption combines classical encryption with modern post-quantum cryptography, ensuring that legacy systems and quantum-safe systems can coexist, thus enabling a smoother transition. The integration of ML-KEM—an emerging standard for key exchange in the post-quantum era—allows Cloudflare to offer a solution that is secure today and resilient in the future.
Key Components of Cloudflare One’s Post-Quantum Encryption
Cloudflare’s approach to post-quantum encryption involves two critical components: key agreement and digital signatures.
- Key Agreement: Traditionally, key agreement protocols like Diffie-Hellman (DH) were used to securely establish a shared secret for encrypting communications. In the post-quantum world, Cloudflare uses ML-KEM in a hybrid form with classical key agreement protocols, like Diffie-Hellman and Elliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman (ECDHE), for encryption. This hybrid approach prevents quantum computers from breaking existing systems while future-proofing against the power of quantum machines.
- Digital Signatures: Digital signatures are vital for authenticating messages and ensuring the integrity of data. While quantum-safe digital signatures are still being standardized, Cloudflare is already at the forefront of PQ signature adoption, contributing to NIST’s efforts to create robust quantum-resistant standards.
Post-Quantum Encryption in IPsec: Breaking New Ground
In addition to SASE, Cloudflare’s IPsec service, a crucial component of its WAN-as-a-Service offering, has been upgraded to support hybrid ML-KEM. IPsec is typically used to create secure tunnels between network devices, and Cloudflare’s adoption of ML-KEM encryption in IPsec connections offers enterprises a future-proof solution to secure their WAN traffic.
Unlike TLS, which primarily secures web traffic, IPsec is designed to work at Layer 3, encrypting traffic between devices like routers or firewalls. With the introduction of ML-KEM into IPsec’s Internet Key Exchange (IKEv2) protocol, Cloudflare has created a quantum-safe solution for businesses, ensuring that even private network communications are protected from future quantum attacks.
The Hybrid Approach: A Pragmatic Path to Quantum-Safe Security
Cloudflare’s hybrid ML-KEM approach is designed to prevent “harvest-now, decrypt-later” attacks, where adversaries collect encrypted data today and decrypt it once quantum computers become powerful enough. What sets hybrid ML-KEM apart is that it doesn’t require specialized hardware or a dedicated physical connection between client and server, which is a limitation faced by other quantum-safe solutions like Quantum Key Distribution (QKD). Additionally, hybrid ML-KEM allows for seamless interoperability with classical encryption systems, offering a transition that’s both secure and scalable.
Cloudflare’s decision to implement hybrid ML-KEM in their IPsec products was driven by their commitment to simplicity and interoperability. Unlike proprietary, untested quantum encryption solutions, hybrid ML-KEM aligns with industry standards set by NIST and IETF, ensuring a broad, secure transition to quantum-safe systems.
Seamless Integration and Interoperability
Cloudflare’s cloud-native solutions have been designed with simplicity and scalability in mind. The integration of post-quantum encryption into Cloudflare One doesn’t require businesses to purchase specialized hardware.
The platform upgrade, included at no extra cost, supports hybrid ML-KEM encryption across major on-ramps and off-ramps, ensuring that organizations can protect traffic from remote workers, branch offices, and even data center links.
Cloudflare is also prioritizing interoperability by inviting other vendors to test against their IPsec implementations. This collaboration with the wider industry ensures that Cloudflare’s solutions remain compatible with existing network infrastructures, which is critical for businesses transitioning to a quantum-safe future.
The Road Ahead: Embracing the Post-Quantum World
As the transition to post-quantum cryptography accelerates, Cloudflare’s dedication to quantum-safe security will enable businesses to stay ahead of evolving threats. By combining cutting-edge encryption technologies with a focus on simplicity, interoperability, and scalability, Cloudflare is paving the way for a future-proof, quantum-safe internet.
For organizations looking to secure their networks, whether through remote access or site-to-site connections, Cloudflare One offers a seamless, future-ready solution. With hybrid ML-KEM encryption now integrated across its SASE and IPsec platforms, Cloudflare ensures that businesses can meet the quantum challenges ahead today.
To learn more about how Cloudflare is leading the charge in post-quantum encryption, check out the original content here.
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