Security for the Quantum Era: Implementing Post-Quantum Cryptography in Android

Posted by Eric Lynch, Product Manager, Android and Dom Elliott, Group Product Manager, Google Play Modern digital security is at a turning point. We are on the threshold of using quantum computers to solve "impossible" problems in drug discovery, materials science, and energy—tasks that even the most powerful classical supercomputers cannot handle. This puts the public-key cryptography we’ve relied on for decades at risk, potentially compromising everything from bank transfers to trade secrets. To secure our future, it is vital to adopt the new Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) standards National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is urging before large-scale, fault-tolerant quantum computers become a reality.

For Android, the objective extends beyond patching individual applications or transport protocols. The imperative is to ensure that the entire platform architecture is resilient for the decades to come. We are beginning tests of PQC enhancements starting in the next Android 17 beta, followed by general availability in the Android 17 production release.