TOPPAN Develops World's First Dual-Interface Smart Card with Post-Quantum Cryptography

TOPPAN has developed PQC CARD Dual, a smart card that can be used for both contact and contactless transactions, meaning it can be either physically inserted into a reader or tapped, and the company says it's the first card in the world to combine that dual-interface capability with post-quantum cryptography (PQC), encryption designed to remain secure even against attacks from future quantum computers. TOPPAN is targeting the card for high-security applications like government ID cards and medical authentication cards, aiming to begin offering it in public service and medical sectors starting in fiscal year 2027.

 

The technical challenge TOPPAN had to solve comes down to memory. PQC requires significantly more computational resources and data storage than conventional encryption methods, which has historically made it difficult to fit onto smart cards given their limited memory and processing power. TOPPAN says it overcame this using proprietary memory-saving technology that optimizes how memory is used, making it possible to fit PQC's heavier cryptographic demands onto a dual-interface chip despite its limited capacity. The card's built-in encryption algorithm complies with the long-term security standards set by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Because the card supports both current encryption methods and PQC sim...