CISSP Practice Question – Security Architecture & Engineering (Post-Quantum Risk & Long-Term Data Confidentiality)

A pharmaceutical company stores decades of proprietary research data in encrypted archives. Recent threat intelligence reports warn that several nation-state actors are collecting large volumes of encrypted data today (“harvest-now, decrypt-later”) in preparation for future quantum decryption capabilities. The company currently uses RSA-2048 for key exchange and AES-256 for bulk encryption.

What is the MOST critical action to take to protect the long-term confidentiality of this archived data?

A. Increase RSA key length to 4096 bits to delay quantum-based decryption timelines.

B. Migrate to a hybrid post-quantum key-establishment scheme (e.g., classical + lattice-based) for future encryptions and begin re-encrypting high-value archives.

C. Deploy quantum-random number generators (QRNGs) to improve entropy for new cryptographic keys.

D. Implement HSM-protected symmetric keys with annual rotation to strengthen present-day cryptographic hygiene.

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