2024-08-20 22:02:32
A long file with heavy files will it is fast from Sofia to the Tower
A speedway secured with quantum encryption was launched by the BAS and the Ministry of the Interior on Tuesday. At the opening was the acting interior minister Kalin Stoyanov, whose resignation at the same time had already been requested by all politicians except Delyan Peevski.
Behind the complicated words, the idea behind the route is that the Ministry of Internal Affairs will be able to exchange files much more quickly, for example information about border control, ID references and more. For now, the route is only from Sofia to the Tower, but the innovative thing is that it is not owned by a private telecom, but by the state.
The relationship that the state has built is in accordance with the measures foreseen in the National Plan of our country in the field of cyber security. They are implemented jointly in all EU member states, in response to the ever-increasing cyber attacks on the territory of the entire European Union.
“The route consists of four optical sections, two terminal stations in Sofia and Kulata (the endpoints for information exchange – b. r.) and three intermediate stations, the so-called trusted nodes in Kyustendil, Blagoevgrad and Rupite”, explained Associate Professor Lachezar Georgiev, head of the National Center for Quantum Communication, Intelligent Systems for Security and Risk Management – QUAZAR, at the BAS. Trust nodes make communication much more secure and difficult to intercept by hackers for example. To break it, they have to hit all the nodes. In addition, the achieved average speed of generating quantum keys for the entire route is 500 bit/s, and in individual sections it reaches up to 2500 bit/s. This is at least 2 times faster than previous connections, and it does not depend on breakdowns in telecoms.
At the event, to which journalists were not invited, Kalin Stoyanov emphasized that the route is not only an exceptional achievement in the field of cyber security, but also places our country among the first countries in Europe to introduce such a high-tech communication network.
“Our joint work with the National Center for Quantum Communications at BAS is an example of how the academic community and Bulgarian scientists can provide significant support to our country on current topics, such as dealing with cybercrime, hybrid attacks,” Minister Stoyanov added. He took up this project back in February, when there was no buzz around his name. Then he received an honorary plaque and a diploma for the high contribution of the Ministry of the Interior in the development of quantum technologies and the communication sovereignty of Bulgaria. The award was presented to him by Prof. August Ivanov, director of the Institute of Robotics of the BAS. QUAZAR is a center of this institute.
The newly built demonstration route is the first step within the single European initiative EuroQCI, which is implemented under the coordination of the European Commission. It aims to protect sensitive data and critical infrastructures by integrating quantum-based systems into existing communication networks, providing an additional layer of security based on quantum physics.
“Until now, the track has been built entirely with funds from the European Commission. We have submitted a request to the Council of Ministers to secure the necessary state funding and we hope that the decision will be made in the shortest possible time, so that we can continue to implement the activities under the National Plan as planned”, stressed Associate Professor Lachezar Georgiev.
In September, the next stage of the construction of quantum-encrypted networks is about to be launched. It will be through specialized interconnector stations to ensure cross-border connection of national networks. In this way, Europe aims to strengthen the protection of its government institutions, its data centers, hospitals, power grids and more, becoming one of the main pillars of the EU’s cybersecurity strategy for the coming decades.