Training Course Professional

Harvest-Now-Decrypt-Later Risk Assessment

Structured risk assessment for HNDL exposure: data classification, retention periods, and prioritised remediation.

Full day (6 hours)
Certificate on completion
Enquire About This Course View Curriculum

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Eclypses
Arqit
QuantBond
Krown
Applied Quantum
Quantum Bitcoin
Venari Security
QuStream
BHO Legal
Census
QSP
IONQ - ID Quantique
Patero
Entopya
Belden
Atlant3D
Zenith Studio
Qudef
Aries Partners
GQI
Upperside Conferences
Austrade
Arrise Innovations
CyberRST
Triarii Research
QSysteme
WizzWang
DeepTech DAO
Xyberteq
Viavi
Entrust
Qsentinel
Nokia
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Course Overview

For CISOs, security architects, and data protection leads. Covers the harvest-now-decrypt-later threat model, Mosca inequality risk scoring for data assets by classification and retention period, cryptographic exposure mapping across TLS, VPN, email, and database encryption, and practical HNDL mitigation strategies including forward secrecy assessment and PQC migration sequencing.

Curriculum

Course content is structured into sessions below. Each session is configurable to your organisation's environment, threat model, and objectives.

# Session Topics
1 The HNDL Threat Model Why harvest-now-decrypt-later is the most immediate quantum risk
2 Data Classification for HNDL Exposure Identifying which data assets face retroactive decryption risk
  • Mosca inequality: if data confidentiality period + migration time exceeds time to CRQC, the data is at risk now. Worked examples for 5-year, 10-year, and 25-year retention data.
  • Data sensitivity tiers: mapping classification levels (public, internal, confidential, restricted, top secret) against retention requirements to produce HNDL risk scores
  • High-value HNDL targets: diplomatic communications, M&A activity, trade secrets, patient records, classified intelligence, long-term contracts, and cryptographic key material itself
Break
3 Cryptographic Exposure Mapping Auditing which encryption protocols are vulnerable to retroactive quantum attack
  • Protocol-level exposure: TLS session keys (ephemeral versus static), VPN tunnel encryption, email encryption (S/MIME, PGP), and database TDE key wrapping
  • Key agreement vulnerability: RSA key transport and ECDH key agreement are the quantum-vulnerable operations. AES-256 symmetric encryption remains resistant.
  • Forward secrecy assessment: protocols using ephemeral Diffie-Hellman provide limited HNDL protection (captured ciphertext still decryptable if the key exchange is broken). Only PQC key agreement eliminates the risk.
4 Hands-On Exercise: HNDL Risk Assessment Building your organisation's HNDL exposure profile
  • Cryptographic inventory: cataloguing data assets by classification, retention period, encryption protocol, and key agreement mechanism
  • HNDL risk scoring: applying the Mosca inequality to each data class using configurable CRQC timeline assumptions (optimistic: 2035, median: 2040, conservative: 2050)
  • Priority heat map: visualising which data assets require immediate PQC migration versus those with acceptable remaining protection windows
Break
5 Mitigation Strategies and Migration Sequencing Practical steps to reduce HNDL exposure before full PQC migration
  • Immediate mitigations: enabling forward secrecy where not yet active, reducing data retention periods where regulations permit, and encrypting data at rest with quantum-resistant symmetric keys under customer control
  • PQC migration sequencing for HNDL: prioritise highest-sensitivity longest-retention data first. Key hierarchy migration before bulk re-encryption.
  • Hybrid key agreement: deploying ML-KEM alongside classical ECDH during the transition period to provide quantum resistance without breaking backward compatibility
6 Regulatory Landscape and Board Communication Compliance requirements and risk escalation for HNDL
  • CNSA 2.0 (NSA): explicit guidance that HNDL makes PQC migration urgent for classified and sensitive data. ENISA, BSI, ANSSI, and UK NCSC equivalent guidance.
  • NIST SP 1800-38 (Migration to Post-Quantum Cryptography) and its HNDL risk assessment recommendations
  • Board communication: translating HNDL risk into business language. Timeline visualisations showing when specific data classes become exposed under different CRQC arrival scenarios.
7 Q&A and Action Planning

Designed and Delivered By

Training courses are designed and delivered by QSECDEF in collaboration with subject specialists. All instructors have direct experience in quantum technologies and security.

QD

Quantum Security Defence

Course design and delivery

QSECDEF brings expertise in post-quantum cryptography, quantum computing strategy, and defence-grade security assessment. Our membership spans 900+ organisations and 1,500+ professionals working at the intersection of quantum technologies and critical infrastructure security.

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