Quantum Optics Jena’s ELVIS System Passes Independent Security Testing for Quantum Communication

Insider Brief

• Quantum Optics Jena’s ELVIS quantum communication system passed six independent security tests conducted under ISO/IEC 23837 by TÜV Informationstechnik GmbH.
• The evaluation tested the system against potential hardware-based side-channel attacks targeting components such as lasers, detectors, and optical elements used in quantum key distribution systems.
• Quantum Optics Jena said the testing supports efforts to develop security certification standards for commercial quantum communication systems.

Press release – Quantum Optics Jena GmbH today announced that its ELVIS system has become the world’s first quantum communication system to resist real-world quantum hacking tricks, passing the most-rigorous round of independent security testing to date. 

The ELVIS system was subject to six tests, under ISO/IEC 23837, conducted over three months by TÜV Informationstechnik GmbH, an independent German testing and assessment company. The technology resisted and endured each attack with no major weaknesses found or exploited. Until now, no one has proven that such a system can survive the toughest independent test built to hunt for exactly those weaknesses. 

“Quantum encryption sounds bulletproof, but it’s only as strong as the solution design and the hardware it runs on,” said Kevin Füschel, CEO of Quantum Optics Jena. “We wanted an independent team to try to find the cracks before a hacker did. They looked hard, and they didn’t find any. That’s exactly the outcome we are working for and we’re the first company anywhere to have put a system through this level of scrutiny.” 

Quantum Optics Jena uses so-called Quantum key distribution (QKD) to generate and distribute encryption keys which are designed to be inherently secure. It uses the laws of physics and relies on entangled particles of light to carry secret keys, and in theory, any eavesdropper trying to intercept them gets caught instantly. However, hackers don’t target the physics and instead, they attack the equipment. In the past, they have achieved this by exploiting the lasers, detectors, optical components and other parts of the hardware. 

These are called side-channel attacks, and they’re the single biggest practical threat to quantum encryption today. The hacker with patience and the right equipment is currently more dangerous than the computational power of a quantum computer. 

“Independent testing is the foundation of trust in any new security technology. With this evaluation, QKD takes a first concrete step toward the certification standards the industry will ultimately need,” said Sven Bettendorf, Lead Expert for Quantum Technologies at TÜV Informationstechnik GmbH. 

The milestone comes as governments and enterprises increasingly weigh quantum-safe technology for critical infrastructure, from power grids to financial networks, where even a small security gap can carry outsized consequences. 

QOJ said it plans to put future systems through the same level of independent testing as it scales its quantum communication technology for commercial and government customers worldwide. 

“Every industry that depends on secure data, from energy and finance to defense and telecom, is going to have to reckon with quantum eventually,” Füschsel added. “We have proved that our technology holds up now, under real scrutiny, today so no one has to find out the hard way later.” 

The testing methodology was developed under QuNET+BlueCert, a German research initiative backed by Fraunhofer institutes and academic partners to build certification standards for quantum communication.