Post quantum group signatures improve privacy and security in 5g vehicle communications
Quantum-Seeded Distributed Post-Quantum Group Signatures for 5G V2X Communications
Cryptography and Security
Summary
Current vehicle communication systems use security methods that could be broken by future quantum computers and rely on non-cryptographic ways to keep drivers anonymous. The authors introduce a new system called qDGSP that uses quantum-resistant digital signatures and distributes trust between a central controller and roadside verifiers. Their method ensures secret keys are never sent over insecure channels and keeps vehicle messages unlinkable across different 5G cells, enhancing privacy. Tests show it meets strict timing requirements and improves message delivery rates under heavy network use.
What this means in practice
- •For automotive network engineers: Implement enhanced vehicle-to-everything communication protocols that resist quantum computing attacks and improve privacy and message delivery in 5G networks.
- •For 5g network operators: Integrate quantum-seeded group signature schemes to secure roadside units and support anonymous vehicle communication without exposing secret keys over classical channels.
Authors
P. Blanco-Casal, P. Rejo-Iglesias, D. Cajaraville-Aboy, J. Vecino-Peñas, R. P. Díaz-Redondo, A. Fernández-Vilas, M. Fernández Veiga
Abstract
Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) communications rely on elliptic-curve signatures that a quantum adversary breaks and on pseudonym certificates whose anonymity rests on rotation rate, not cryptography. This work presents qDGSP, a post-quantum V2X infrastructure: a hash-based dynamic group signature scheme (DGSP, over SPHINCS+ and WOTS+) distributed between a central controller and roadside verifiers. Group keys derive deterministically from quantum key distribution (QKD) seeds served over the ETSI GS QKD 014 interface, so no group-signature secret crosses the classical channel. qDGSP-EA (Ephemeral Association) binds an ephemeral ML-DSA-65 key to one group signature per 5G cell: messages remain unlinkable across cells, linkable within one. On a testbed with emulated 5G links, median end-to-end latency stayed within the 100ms ETSI budget for every variant. The qDGSP-EA intra-cell DENM matched the NIST ML-DSA-65 baseline on the wire, and under load EA mode raised delivery from roughly 78% to 93%.