Secure PQC implementations, Cryptanalysis and Post-quantum Digital Trust

Expected Outcome: Proposals are expected to contribute one or more of the following: Practical robust implementations of PQC schemes that can withstand implementation attacks including side-channel attacks, fault attacks and combined attacks, and design of automated tools for evaluating the security of PQC implementations. Comprehensive guidelines for implementing countermeasures against a wide range of attacks; Advances in understanding the quantum hardness of mathematical problem classes; new quantum algorithms and improvements in quantum programming and implementation; security validation methods; design of post-quantum schemes with improved security against quantum and AI-based attacks; Post-quantum schemes and protocols to support privacy-friendly applications and services, ncluding the secure and private use of electronic identities. Design of new digital signatures, key encapsulation mechanisms, and other schemes or use of existing ones to build new verification protocols. Scope: Securing PQC algorithm implementations is vital to protect against implementation attacks, such as side channel attacks, fault attacks and combinations of these, which may be amplified by deep learning. Current countermeasures incur significant overhead, and new approaches are needed to balance security and performance. Formal verification tools and methodologies can help achieve this goal and provide machine-readable evidence. Furthermore, to boost confidence in PQC systems, their security should be assessed, including the potential impact of new quantum algorithms or new optimizations of existing ones, also combined with AI. Another key research area is digital trust in the post-quantum era, which requires transforming various areas, such as secure identities, data protection, access to essential services, and applications such as backup recovery, browser extensions and others into trusted and reliable solutions, via new post-quantum schemes and advanced building blocks for privacy-enhancing protocols. Proposals should address one of the following technology areas: Development of solutions to prevent implementation attacks, balancing security, performance and cost; research in new attacks, including AI-powered ones, and/or combination of attacks, to inform secure design; creation of testing frameworks for automated security evaluations; improvement of formal verification methodologies. Quantum hardness analysis, via the study of the impact of new quantum algorithms or improvement of existing quantum algorithm implementations as well as the impact of AI-supported quantum attacks; analysis of cryptanalysis results; design of new post-quantum schemes using the information of the advances achieved/ fine-tuning of parameters sets. Design of quantum-resistant schemes and protocols supporting the field of privacy-friendly applications and services, including electronic identities, verification protocols and pseudonymous access options, protocols for attestation and anonymous attestation, for real world scenarios, via the design of new digital signature schemes and key encapsulation mechanisms, design of advanced cryptographic schemes, and usage of existing schemes in new protocols, for post-quantum digital identity and digital trust systems.

For guidance and support related to this call, we recommend that you first contact the National Cybersecurity Coordination Centres (NCC) in your country, where available. The Network of NCCs includes one national centre from each of the 27 EU Member States plus Iceland and Norway. You may also address your questions to the ECCC Applicants Direct Contact Centre at applicants@eccc.europa.eu . Online Manual is your guide on the procedures from proposal submission to managing your grant. Horizon Europe Programme Guide contains the detailed guidance to the structure, budget and political priorities of Horizon Europe. Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ – find the answers to most frequently asked questions on submission of proposals, evaluation and grant management. Research Enquiry Service – ask questions about any aspect of European research in general and the EU Research Framework Programmes in particular. National Contact Points (NCPs) – get guidance, practical information and assistance on participation in Horizon Europe. There are also NCPs in many non-EU and non-associated countries (‘third-countries’). Enterprise Europe Network – contact your EEN national contact for advice to businesses with special focus on SMEs. The support includes guidance on the EU research funding. IT Helpdesk – contact the Funding & Tenders Portal IT helpdesk for questions such as forgotten passwords, access rights and roles, technical aspects of submission of proposals, etc. European IPR Helpdesk assists you on intellectual property issues. CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk and ETSI Research Helpdesk – the European Standards Organisations advise you how to tackle standardisation in your project proposal. The European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for their recruitment – consult the general principles and requirements specifying the roles, responsibilities and entitlements of researchers, employers and funders of researchers. Partner Search help you find a partner organisation for your proposal.

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