Remarks: National Cyber Director Coker Remarks at White House Event on Post-Quantum Cryptography

Washington, D.C.

August 13, 2024

Remarks as Prepared for Delivery

Good afternoon. Thank you, Clare, Anne and Steve for the ongoing partnerships.

And thank you to the Office of Science and Technology Policy for bringing us together to recognize the achievement of NIST, the algorithms teams, and the global testing partners who all enabled this new standard.

Today, we stand at a critical juncture in our efforts to secure the future of our Nation and our allies. 

As we celebrate the profound gifts of technological progress, it’s important to consider the level of vulnerability quantum computing potentially exposes us to. These capabilities are projected to break much of our current encryption, leaving significant impacts on our national and economic security and every individual’s right to privacy. 

Currently, a large portion of our daily internet communications rely on public-key cryptography to protect everything from email authentication to secure payment protocols to establishing internet connections.

Once a quantum computer of significant and sufficient size and sophistication to pose a threat to cryptography is developed, public-key cryptography will be at risk. Breaking encryption threatens the three essential pillars of cybersecurity: confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

• First, breaking encryption would undermine the confidentiality of data as it would expose the most sensitive and classified government communications for our adversaries to exploit to their strategic advantage. This also has profound implications for Americans’ privacy, as personal communications and private information would be exposed for anyone to see.
• Second, breaking encryption would undermine integrity, as it would allow attackers to invalidate digital signatures. This means hackers would be able to issue fake government communications, causing widespread misinformation and operational disruptions.
• Third, breaking encryption would undermine availability, as it would allow adversaries to impact the delivery of critical infrastructure services such as energy grids and healthcare systems.

The Biden-Harris Administration’s National Cybersecurity Strategy recognizes the need to prepare for revolutionary changes brought on by quantum computing. This is one of the reasons we’ve made investing in a resilient future a core pillar of that strategy. Investments in cybersecurity and resiliency have long trailed the threats and challenges they seek to mitigate.

And in the case of quantum computing, the threat isn’t just on the horizon; it’s here now. As you heard from NIST Director Dr. Locascio, malicious actors are already using a “store-now, break-later” strategy, gathering encrypted data today with the intention to decrypt it once they have the quantum capabilities. This endangers our national secrets and future operations.

Also, it should come as no surprise that nations are investing heavily in quantum computing research, which could pose a massive security threat as they aim to gain strategic advantages and dominate cyberspace.

Given the magnitude and potential impact of the threat, we must act with urgency.

Those who have spoken before me have talked about our plan for migrating to post-quantum cryptography. It’s a good plan that hinges on taking decisive action now.

We must marry the actions laid out today with the speed and attention to detail this threat demands. As the saying goes, “the best way to predict the future is to create it.” 

This brings me to the commendable work of NIST. 

For the past eight years, NIST has led the development of post-quantum algorithms, ensuring they are robust and capable of withstanding quantum attacks.

Today’s release of these standards marks a critical milestone.

Since the President signed National Security Memorandum 10 in May of 2022, we’ve worked with Office of Management and Budget, the National Security Council, and the National Security Agency, amongst others to ensure Departments and Agencies are inventorying their systems for instances of vulnerable cryptography.

We want to thank the Departments and Agencies for their commendable work to identify high-value assets that will be prioritized within the cryptographic transition and help us better understand our collective level of risk. Because of this work, we are much better prepared than ever to implement these newly standardized algorithms.

Now, the real work of migration must begin.

The encryption transition will require substantial resources to ensure its success. Resources will be an investment in the future security, reliability, and stability of the internet to ensure our digital ecosystem flourishes for all of society. 

These resources include the people needed to implement the post-quantum algorithms.

Through the Administration’s National Cyber Workforce and Education Strategy, we are focusing on skills to strengthen and future-proof our domestic workforce.

This operates in tandem with the excellent work by the National Science & Technology Council’s Quantum Information Science and Technology Workforce Development National Strategic Plan, which identifies the specific actions necessary to strengthen our domestic quantum-skilled workforce.

Together, these efforts will ensure we are well-equipped to transition to a post-quantum world and then defend it.

However, our networks do not operate in isolation. They are interconnected with commercial vendors and international partners. Therefore, this is a challenge that transcends borders.

To be truly effective, our transition must occur in tandem with our friends and allies abroad.

• In concert with State’s Bureau of Cyberspace & Digital Policy, we are working closely with international partners to learn where we can and share our own experiences.
• We are particularly grateful to the governments of the United Kingdom, France, and Singapore for their respective leadership in advancing PQC globally.
• ONCD, as well as the offices represented here, recognize the importance of working alongside our international partners, including Governments, civil society organizations and research institutions.
• By speaking at today’s event, we each hope to not only educate the broad populace on what some may consider a distant, complex, technical issue, but more importantly, enable us to build a coalition of advocates that can spur the momentum necessary to execute this transition globally.
• By sharing knowledge, strategies, and innovations, we can create a resilient global defense against those who intend to use quantum computing to compromise the security of our systems.

We also recognize the vital role of the private sector in making this transition. We will continue to support NIST’s work with industry to understand obstacles to post-quantum deployment and opportunities to share lessons learned to streamline the transition for the entire U.S. ecosystem.

Transitioning to post-quantum cryptography is a cornerstone of all we’re trying to achieve in cyberspace. Our mission – to shape and secure cyberspace to advance national security, economic prosperity, and technological innovation – hinges on trust in our systems and data. By committing ourselves fully to this transition, the Biden Harris Administration will be able to continue providing the high-quality services the public demands of its Government. Architecting digital systems of trust are built through each of those discrete, daily transactions between our people and our Government.

Securing against quantum threats is therefore not just an option, but a necessity for the future of our national security, economic stability, and foundational civil liberties—and more broadly to maintain trust in Government.

The stakes are high, and the time to act is now. NIST has done their part, and now it’s up to the rest of us to build on NIST’s stellar work. We must continue to drive our Government and private sector, as well as encourage our friends and allies abroad, to initiate deployment efforts. 

Together, with our domestic and international partners, we must rise to meet this challenge and safeguard our digital future.

Thank you all for your dedication to this work.