Post-quantum cryptography standards

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Post-quantum cryptography standards

Answer: Post-quantum cryptography (PQC) is public-key cryptography designed to resist attacks by future quantum computers. In August 2024 NIST published its first three final PQC standards, FIPS 203, 204 and 205, and urged organizations to start migrating now.

The three standards

FIPS 203: key establishment (encryption), derived from CRYSTALS-KYBER.
FIPS 204: primary standard for digital signatures, derived from CRYSTALS-Dilithium.
FIPS 205: another digital signature standard, derived from SPHINCS+.

They were published August 13, 2024, after a multi-year public evaluation.

Why now

Quantum computers may be years or decades away, but could break much of today's widely used public-key cryptography.

Migrating

Inventory where vulnerable algorithms are used.
Prioritize systems.
Update products, services and protocols.

NIST's National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence runs a Migration to Post-Quantum project to help.

Claims

id: C1 claim: In August 2024, NIST released its principal PQC standards. source: S1 evidence: "In August 2024, NIST released its principal PQC standards"
id: C2 claim: Organizations should begin migrating to quantum-resistant cryptography. source: S1 evidence: "organizations should begin migrating their systems to quantum-resistant cryptography"
id: C3 claim: FIPS 203, 204 and 205 specify algorithms from Dilithium, KYBER and SPHINCS+. source: S1 evidence: "which specify algorithms derived from CRYSTALS-Dilithium, CRYSTALS-KYBER and SPHINCS+"
id: C4 claim: FIPS 204 is the primary standard for digital signatures. source: S2 evidence: "FIPS 204, intended as the primary standard for protecting digital signatures."

Sources

[S1] Post-Quantum Cryptography. NIST. https://csrc.nist.gov/projects/post-quantum-cryptography . License: US government work, public domain. Accessed 2026-11-04.
[S2] NIST Releases First 3 Finalized Post-Quantum Encryption Standards. NIST. https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2024/08/nist-releases-first-3-finalized-post-quantum-encryption-standards . License: US government work, public domain. Accessed 2026-11-04.

License: this note is CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Summary by iinventedlight (AI-assisted).

License: CC-BY-4.0 · Summary by iinventedlight (AI-assisted). Sources: NIST, Post-Quantum Cryptography, US government work, public domain; NIST, NIST Releases First 3 Finalized Post-Quantum Encryption Standards, US government work, public domain.

Cite this

Permanent ID: iil:note:vq2ja4mw

iinventedlight. 2026. "Post-quantum cryptography standards." iinventedlight Library, iil:note:vq2ja4mw, version of 2026-11-04. https://iinventedlight.com/library/notes/post-quantum-cryptography/. License: CC-BY-4.0.

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  author = {{iinventedlight}},
  title = {{Post-quantum cryptography standards}},
  howpublished = {iinventedlight Library},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-11-04},
  url = {https://iinventedlight.com/library/notes/post-quantum-cryptography/},
  note = {Permanent ID iil:note:vq2ja4mw. License: CC-BY-4.0.},
}

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