Quantum Computing: A Tool for Zero-Trust Wireless Networks

Ahmed Farouk, Saif Al-Kuwari, Hussein Abulkasim, Shahid Mumtaz, Muhammad Adil, Houbing Herbert Song

Abstract: Zero trust for wireless networks (ZTWN) is a model to ensure that all network traffic, including wireless connections, is considered untrusted and requires authentication and authorization, regardless of the network location or user identity. The infrastructure of zero trust depends on classical cryptographic techniques to guarantee the necessary security measures. Unfortunately, quantum computing has the potential to break many cryptographic techniques, which could compromise the confidentiality and integrity of data transmitted over ZTWN. Therefore, we explored the integration of various quantum components as potential solutions to enhance and achieve the security objectives of ZTWN in the long term. Furthermore, three different quantum machine learning (QML) algorithms have been investigated on two anomaly detection datasets; the achieved accuracies outperform the implemented classical. Quantum identity authentication (QIA) and quantum communication protocols leverage quantum properties, such as quantum entanglement and superposition have been developed to ensure secure and tamper-proof communication between ZTWN entities. The security analysis of the proposed protocols against inside and outside attacks proved that attackers cannot extract any secret information