- Surfshak has integrated post-quantum cryptography (PQC) into WireGuard
- PQC protection is enabled by default on macOS, Linux, and Android
- Surfshark warns that only 8% of popular apps are quantum-safe
Surshark has integrated post-quantum cryptography (PQC) into its WireGuard protocol for the first time, aiming to enhance users’ data protection against potential future breaches by quantum computers.
With the move, the cybersecurity company bolsters one of the best VPNs on the market by adding an extra security layer to WireGuard’s current elliptic-curve-based encryption with a next-generation method that can ensure data protection even against quantum computers.
The extra defence comes enabled by default with WireGuard on macOS, Linux, and Android, with Surfshark planning to expand to iOS and Windows soon.
How does it work?
Donatas Budvytis, CTO at Surfshark, explains to TechRadar that the new implementation does not replace the original WireGuard’s cryptography, but adds a quantum layer on top, operating inside the VPN tunnel using an additional custom service.
Since WireGuard’s initial handshake is not PQC-protected, the process involves a two-step handshake: first, traditional Curve25519 encryption, followed by PQC using the latest lattice-based ML-KEM algorithm. “The system derives a final encryption key by combining secrets from both layers,” Budvytis notes.
Surfshark did not modify the WireGuard protocol because it already had the original Pre-Shared Key (PSK) mechanism to authenticate data. The integration guarantees backward compatibility, ensuring secure data transmission through the use of secure keys generated during the handshake phase.
While past sessions cannot be secured, future sessions remain fortified even if a quantum computer attacks them later. “Users might feel safer knowing that their VPN sessions are future-proof, and even if the encryption keys are stolen, they cannot be used to decrypt past traffic,” Budvytis adds.
Readiness in the post-quantum world
As it continues to strengthen its encryption system, Surfshark is also urging businesses and governments to increase preparedness by stepping up training and implementing advanced security measures in an increasingly imminent post-quantum world.
While quantum computers’ capabilities are still limited, the company warns these could soon become powerful enough to breach current encryption systems, taking only a few hours to crack codes that would take traditional computers years to solve.
The big risk? Hackers who steal large amounts of encrypted data today could easily unlock and access it when quantum computers are available. So-called ‘Harvest now, decrypt later‘ attacks can expose the very data you believe to be secure today as a latent threat in the future.
The push comes after a recent study conducted by Surfshark analysed 40 of the most popular apps in the banking, shopping, social media, and messaging sectors, finding that only 8% are currently quantum-resistant.
Around 65% of the apps analysed have no public information about their PQC adoption plans, while only 30% of the app developers analysed are conducting research or planning to become quantum-resistant.
This is a particular issue as upgrading security on your VPN only solves half the problem. “Imagine someone making a bank transfer. Even if you use a VPN with post-quantum protection that encrypts the entire process, your data remains vulnerable if the bank itself lacks similar protection,” explains Budvytis. “This may lead to major financial losses both for the individual and the bank.”
TikTok was found to be the only social media app to be quantum-resistant. Messaging apps are the best-prepared category, with Google, owner of Google Messages, and Meta, owner of WhatsApp and Messenger, already boosting proactive steps to protect themselves from quantum threats.
Surfshark joins other VPN services that have already implemented secure quantum encryption, including Mullvad, Express VPN, and NordVPN – with the latter recently announcing its ongoing efforts to implement quantum protection in its login phase. A new era in VPN security is dawning.
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