Andreas Neuhold from CANCOM represented the QCI-CAT project at the Grazer Linuxtage 2025 and shared an insightful presentation on a use case developed within our European research project, coordinated by AIT. His talk introduced “Arnika”, a quantum-resistant VPN solution based on WireGuard, developed as an open-source component to fill a critical gap identified during the project.
Arnika is designed to interface with QKD (Quantum Key Distribution) systems via an ETSI014 standard interface, retrieve quantum-generated key material, and inject it as a pre-shared key into WireGuard VPN. In addition, it can integrate keys from post-quantum cryptography (PQC) solutions—such as Rosenpass—and combine QKD and PQC keys through HKDF (HMAC-based Key Derivation Function) before passing them into WireGuard VPN.
As Andreas emphasized, quantum cryptography is becoming increasingly relevant because quantum computers are expected to break current encryption methods within the next decade. While PQC provides a software-based approach to counter this threat, QKD offers a complementary solution by leveraging quantum mechanical effects, such as entangled photons, to securely generate symmetric encryption keys without the need for key exchange.
This presentation was an excellent opportunity to showcase how QCI-CAT is driving forward the integration of QKD and PQC into practical, open-source solutions, making quantum-secure communication a reality for the future.
More information:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XO1X27m3T4
https://media.ccc.de/v/glt25-586-quantenkryptographie-auf-open-source-basis