HAIKOU, October 17. /TASS/. The Hainan authorities are planning to create a well-protected telecommunications network for the secure exchange of information with other regions of China and other countries using quantum and satellite technologies, reported the Nanguo Dushibao newspaper.
According to the newspaper, an advanced communication network will be created on the island, which has no analogues in the world. It is expected that thanks to it, the security of both data used by government structures and important information intended for the financial, energy and transport sectors will be significantly increased.
The program is being implemented through the combined efforts of the Wenchang International Space City (northeast Hainan), CAS Quantumnet and the China Broadcasting Network. Investment in the project amounts to about 500 million yuan ($ 74 million).
"This system will allow Hainan to maintain a completely secure connection with key such key cities of China as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, as well as exchange data with all other countries," said Wang Junwei, deputy general manager of CAS Quantumnet.
In August 2017, the Chinese satellite Mo-Tzu, for the first time in history, successfully transmitted data to Earth using quantum cryptography (distribution of encryption keys), a method that theoretically excludes the possibility of unauthorized access to the information being sent. Thus, the Chinese experts have created a precedent for the formation of a global quantum communication network that cannot be hacked by means of a cyber attack.
Quantum cryptography is based on the principles of the behavior of elementary particles, when it is almost impossible to change one of the parameters without distorting the other. If an email message is encoded with these properties in mind, any unauthorized attempt to connect and access the information will change it. Thus, the intruder will not be able to read the intercepted message, and the recipient, by the amount of distortion on the communication channel, will understand that he has been attacked.