Advancements in computing technology and a rapidly evolving threat landscape are compelling government and enterprise organizations to rethink their approach to how they optimize their applications to safeguard sensitive data. While much of the recent conversation on the concept of crypto-agility has focused on the ability to smoothly transition to post-quantum (PQ) resistant algorithms, crypto-agility in practice is a much broader approach to application architecture. The objective is to deliver comprehensive data security, providing the adaptability to not only prepare the organization to transition to quantum resistant algorithms, where appropriate, but to also seamlessly adjust the data security posture to meet new threats and vulnerabilities on the fly, without extensive changes to applications, and while addressing operational demands and regulatory requirements.

In this first edition of a three-part series, we will examine crypto-agility as a framework that extends beyond PQ preparedness to address a variety of data protection needs. We will start by focusing on the critical importance of defining and enforcing a broader scope of capabilities for protecting sensitive data today and into the future. In the next two parts of this series, we will dive deeper into how security can be abstracted from applications to simplify implementation, centralize policy control, and decentralize security enforcement. We will then examine how these approaches can facilitate implementation of the crypto-agile architecture across legacy applications to address current and evolving threats.

What is Crypto-Agility?

According to global research & advisory firm, Gartner®, “crypto-agility is the capability to transparently swap out encryption algorithms and related artifacts in an application, replacing them with newer, different, and presumably, safer algorithms.” 1

However, if we think of crypto-agility in a broader sense as data protection agility, the concept ensures that organizations can effectively respond to evolving threats, which may include threats resulting from advancements in computing technology, as well as virtually any security, regulatory, or business demand that requires a change in how sensitive information is secured or revealed.

Why is Agility Important?

Data protection agility is critically important because change is inevitable. Not only is the threat landscape constantly changing but use cases and business requirements are always evolving. Sensitive information today is acquired, processed, and shared in ever-evolving ways that require us to rethink how we protect data as a critical business resource. Not only are algorithms continuing to evolve, but in the wider data security context, many factors must be considered such as the datasets that we should protect, the various techniques that we might use to protect them for one reason or another (such as encryption, tokenization, digital signing, redaction, hashing, etc.). Should all data be revealed in the same way to all users that are authorized to access data? What if there are new reasons to secure the same data in different ways? For example, expanding and more stringent regulations that mandate not only what data needs to be protected, but also how and where data needs to be processed and stored, are driving the need to quickly adapt to change, requiring a proactive approach to cryptography with flexibility at its core. Enterprises implementing data security in their application can forecast with some certainty that change is coming. If applications are not architected to handle this change seamlessly, things could get messy… and expensive.

Post-Quantum Computing Driving the Need for Change

While there is certainly a myriad of practical drivers for implementing crypto-agile applications, quantum computing may be one of the best and most relevant examples of changing threats that all enterprises will need to address. As advancements in quantum computing heighten the risk of brute-force attacks, existing cryptographic algorithms become vulnerable and will need to be replaced with stronger, more resistant ciphers. In recent years the concept of crypto-agility has become widely used across the industry in the context of PQ preparedness; however, in the three recently published Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) for PQ cryptography,2 crypto-agility was never specifically mentioned. The new FIPS-approved lattice-based key encapsulation, digital signature, and stateless hash-based digital signature standards provide a family of robust new algorithms to address the quantum threat.

Enterprises will certainly need to adopt some of these (or similar) approaches to safeguard their sensitive information, but that does not necessarily mean it will be easy. We often hear of vendors interchanging post-quantum readiness with crypto-agility. What they often mean is crypto-readiness – meaning that their box or service, which might already be deployed at a given enterprise, has PQ algorithms ready for consumption. However, this often involves complex application re-architecture to make use of these algorithms. True crypto-agile architectures allow for the consumption of new algorithms seamlessly.

Beyond Quantum Preparedness

Beyond a migration to new quantum-resistant algorithms, peripheral capabilities must include the wider set of mechanisms to effectively counter threats to data security. This must be done while ensuring that organizations can continue to meet operational demands within established government and industry regulatory frameworks, to deliver true data protection agility. Organizations may have a variety of reasons why they need to implement a crypto-agile architecture. These may include performance, as well as the need for interoperability, compatibility, and adaptability of their security posture to quickly change any aspect without having to rearchitect and reintegrate changes into applications. Other reasons why organizations need the capability to change security on demand include:

• Switching over to safer, faster, or more efficient algorithms or techniques to meet performance requirements in high transaction environments.
• Incrementally securing fields as needed, based on threats and operational aspects.
• Changing tokenization techniques or different token lengths to avoid potential token repetition and collisions.
• Ensuring that cryptographic updates do not break compatibility with other systems or protocols.
• Supporting the integration of systems that use different length fields such as account numbers – a scenario typically found with merging organizations.
• Adding digital signing functionality for validation, hashing data for authentication, or changing security techniques to optimize processes and analytic functions.
• Adding security to a field or file that the organization used to be comfortable leaving in the clear.

Addressing these needs ensures that organizations can achieve and maintain a robust and resilient security posture with minimal disruption in a rapidly evolving threat landscape.

The Way Forward

A more holistic view of crypto-agility would entail implementing architectures, techniques, and solutions that allow for changes to how data is secured and implemented over time with little to no application re-work. Enabling organizations to quickly change any aspect of security, without complex reintegration, allows them to adapt dynamically to new threats and operational needs. By deploying solutions that deliver flexible data-centric cryptography, organizations can take control of evolving security needs and regulatory compliance requirements.

Organizations should look for solutions that address the security of their structured and unstructured data across all applications, on-premises, in the cloud, and in hybrid environments. Implementing centralized management of their data protection policies can help simplify the work that needs to be done to change security enforcement. However, the enforcement of data protection should be distributed to minimize system load and network dependencies. Organizations should ensure they have the capability to apply a broad range of security techniques to address safety, performance, and regulatory needs. And they must make certain that key management is robust, as it will establish the foundation of their data encryption strategy. Overall, solutions should not only support the ability to implement new security algorithms but also deliver architectural approaches and security functionality that enable changes to be made quickly and easily, so that new requirements, which are certain to come, can be addressed at a speed and cost that protects the interests of the enterprise.

To learn more about comprehensive data protection solutions, check out our resources and be sure to sign-up for our quarterly newsletter to get notified about Part 2 of our Crypto-Agility Series.

[1] Gartner Hype Cycle™ for Data Security, 2024, – 29 July 2024, Andrew Bales.

GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally, and HYPE CYCLE is a registered trademark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates and are used herein with permission. All rights reserved.

[2] National Institute of Standards and Technology, FIPS 203, 204, and 205, Post-Quantum Cryptography Standardization Project, August 13, 2024.