Munich-based security technology group Giesecke+Devrient (G+D) has joined uPQComing (Enhancing Cyber-Resilience for the Upcoming Post-Quantum Era), a European research consortium co-funded by the European Union’s Chips Joint Undertaking (Chips JU). The project focuses on migrating critical public digital infrastructure and resource-constrained embedded secure elements—specifically smart card integrated circuits and electronic identity (eID) operating systems—to Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC).
| [ uPQComing Research Scope & G+D Technical Focus ] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Funding & Governance Framework | Hardware & OS Target Environment | Cryptographic Architecture |
| • EU Chips Joint Undertaking (Chips JU) Co-Funded | • Java Card Chip Operating System (OS) | • Hybrid Classical/PQC Authentication Protocols |
| • Pan-European Industry & University Consortium | • Embedded Secure Elements (eID Smart Cards) | • Dynamic Crypto-Agile System Architectures |
| • Focus: Critical Public Digital Infrastructure | • Resource-Constrained Memory & Compute Optimization | • Terminal-to-Card Secure Communication Channels |
Embedded PQC Optimization for Java Card Secure Elements
Integrating lattice-based post-quantum algorithms into smart card microcontrollers introduces severe performance bottlenecks due to larger key sizes, increased memory consumption, and higher computational overhead compared to classical RSA and ECC. Within uPQComing, G+D is engineering specialized implementation pathways for resource-constrained silicon:
- Java Card OS Prototyping: Integrating PQC primitives into a native Java Card chip operating system, optimizing instruction execution, RAM usage, and non-volatile memory footprints to maintain rapid authentication times at verification terminals.
- Crypto-Agile Architecture: Designing flexible firmware layers that allow secure elements to update, swap, or patch cryptographic primitives over time as algorithmic standards and side-channel vulnerability profiles evolve.
- Hybrid Key Exchange and Authentication: Implementing dual-mode cryptographic schemes that combine classical public-key algorithms with PQC mechanisms to ensure backward compatibility and continuous compliance during the multi-year migration phase.
Strategic Alignment with German and European eID Roadmaps
The uPQComing participation expands upon G+D’s feasibility study and proof-of-concept conducted with Germany’s Bundesdruckerei, which validated the practical execution of PQC on the German national ID card. By scaling these prototypes across the uPQComing consortium, G+D aims to establish standardized, quantum-resistant digital identity architectures across European Union member states.
Review the official release via Giesecke+Devrient here.
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