Mythos attack on 3rd-round PQC algorithm candidate puts it out of commission
Summary
A digital signature algorithm called HAWK, designed to resist future quantum computer attacks, has been withdrawn from a U.S. standardization process after a security model named Mythos found a serious flaw. HAWK had passed prior rounds of security tests but was broken in the latest round, showing that its key strength was weaker than expected.Key Facts
- HAWK is a digital signature algorithm meant to protect against attacks from future quantum computers.
- It was a candidate in NIST’s process to become an official post-quantum cryptography (PQC) standard.
- Mythos, a security model developed by Anthropic, discovered a new method that cut HAWK’s key strength in half.
- The flaw found by Mythos means HAWK requires doubling its key size to remain secure, making it less practical.
- After these findings, HAWK’s developer decided to withdraw it from consideration.
- The attacks discovered do not break current cryptosystems but improve methods to challenge them in testing environments.
- The weakened cryptosystems tested were intentionally simplified versions used for evaluation purposes.
- Mythos also found weaknesses in another commonly used cipher, AES, but the impact on current use is minimal.
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