Smart contracts (blockchains, distributed ledgers) and rights management broadly construed are the themes of today's Spotlight Applications. Both of today' Spotlight Applications deal with aspects of quantum cryptography and computing. Assigned to Quantropi (CA), the first application discloses techniques for quantum-safe key exchange, digital signatures and zero-knowledge proofs. Assigned to IBM, the second application discloses techniques for quantum key distribution in a multi-cloud environment.
20220311752, "Quantum-safe cryptographic methods and systems," assigned to Quantropi Inc.(CA)
Abstract
Cryptographic methods and systems for key exchange, digital signature and zero-knowledge proof. In the digital signature scenario, there is provided a method of signing a digital document, comprising: obtaining a private cryptographic key associated with the signer; obtaining a digital asset from the digital document; selecting a base data element; computing a plurality of signature data elements from (i) the digital asset, (ii) the base data element and (iii) the private cryptographic key; and transmitting the digital document and the plurality of signature data elements to a recipient over a data network. Provenance of the digital document is confirmable by the recipient carrying out a predefined computation involving the digital document, the signature data elements, a plurality of noise variables and a public cryptographic key corresponding to the private cryptographic key associated with the signer. In the zero-knowledge proof scenario, the digital asset plays the role of a challenge data element.
20220311603, "Quantum key distribution in a multi-cloud environment," assigned to IBM.
Abstract
In an approach to improve the field of multi-cloud environments by detecting data corruption between storage systems. Embodiments perform information tunneling on data transferring between a source storage system and a target storage system. Further, embodiments determine a checksum data of a data payload does not match an Internet Protocol (IP) packet extracted checksum and a blockchain based checksum and compare the checksum data at the target storage system with the IP packet extracted checksum and the blockchain based checksum to identify one or more checksum mismatches. Additionally, embodiments identify a corruption in a data payload based on the comparison between the checksum data at the target storage system and the IP packet extracted checksum and the blockchain based checksum, validate the corruption in the data payload, and update respective entities of identified corruption in the data payload.
