Vodafone Trials Quantum-Safe Tech to Protect Smartphone Browsing

Telecoms provider Vodafone is trialling new quantum-safe technology, designed to protect smartphone users from future quantum-enabled attacks while browsing the internet.

The UK-based company revealed it has developed a new proof of concept using IBM Quantum Safe technology. This technology will be trialled on Vodafone’s mobile digital security service Secure Net, which provides protections against phishing, malware and identity thefts on Vodafone’s fixed and mobile networks.

The proof of concept is also being supported by cybersecurity firm Akamai.

The solution will implement post-quantum cryptography (PQC) standards to current encryption algorithms.

Luke Ibbetson, Head of Research & Development at Vodafone, commented: “We want our customers to enjoy the internet without worry, now and in the future. On the one hand quantum computing could have many societal benefits such as modelling new medicines and optimizing advanced digital networks. But on the other hand, it could be used to undermine the cryptographic principles that the internet relies on today. That is why Vodafone and IBM are working together with other partners to get ahead of the curve.”

IBM researchers co-developed two of the algorithms included in the US National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) PQC standards, which were formalized in August 2024.

Vodafone and IBM are also founding members of the GSMA Post-Quantum Telco Network Taskforce, set up in 2022, which will help define requirements, identify dependencies and create a roadmap to implement quantum-safe networking across the telecoms industry.

Preparing for the Emerging Quantum Threat

The development of quantum computers powerful enough to break existing encryption algorithms could be just a few years away. This will leave data, connections and components used by all organizations exposed.

Cybercriminals are also using “harvest now, decrypt later” attacks to harvest and store data today for later decryption using this technology.

In February 2025, Microsoft unveiled the world’s first ever quantum chip, Majorana 1. This breakthrough offers a path to developing quantum computers that can scale to a million qubits in “years, not decades,” according to the tech giant.

In addition to the NIST standards, the finance and telecoms sectors have been at the forefront of developing quantum secure solutions to protect sensitive data before ‘Q Day’ – the date at which quantum computers can crack current encryption methods.

This includes BT and Toshiba’s quantum-secured metro network (QSMN), which aims to allow organizations to secure the transmission of valuable data and information between multiple physical locations over standard fiber-optic links using quantum key distribution (QKD).

In February, Google announced the availability of quantum-safe digital signatures in its Cloud Key Management Service (Cloud KMS) for software-based keys. The signatures will support two PQC algorithms included in the NIST standards.