A day after President Donald Trump announced new policies surrounding quantum cryptography, the Kirsten Davies, chief information officer for the U.S. Department of Defense, referred to by the Trump administration as the U.S. Department of War, announced that department’s Post Quantum Cryptography Strategy.
The plan addresses the need to secure the department’s communications, Davies said, as well as secure command and control systems against emerging threats from future quantum computing capabilities.
“Empowering the warfighter is the relentless objective that drives every program,” Davies said. “To deliver on Secretary Hegseth’s vision of the most lethal and dominant military force in the world, our networks must be impenetrable. This strategy secures our tactical edge and the safety of our satellite communications and command systems (SATCOM). It builds the interoperability required to rapidly upgrade our cryptography today while ensuring we can adapt at the speed of innovation to counter the threats of tomorrow.”
The department said it is driving an enterprise-wide transition to deploying quantum-resistant cryptography on high-impact systems by 2030, and across the whole force by 2031. The department said the aggressive rollout aligns with Trump’s Executive Order “Securing the Nation Against Advanced Cryptographic Attacks” and puts the department at the forefront of the national mandate to protect high-value systems.
“As we execute this critical modernization, we remain uncompromisingly focused on delivering value for the American people,” Davies said. “We are answering the President’s call by establishing centralized governance—ensuring we leverage our buying power, eliminate waste, and secure the best possible value for every taxpayer dollar while moving at speed of innovation.”