Khaled Kirah

Fresh masking between pipeline stages in NTT-based post-quantum crypto isn't just good practice, it's provably necessary to erase vulnerabilities arising from prior stages, as demonstrated with a machine-checked proof and a real-world hardware flaw.

Forget complex side-channel analysis: a single, machine-checked theorem proves that masked Barrett reduction leaks at most *one bit* of information per wire, offering a universal security guarantee for post-quantum crypto.

Machine-checked proofs now guarantee the security of arithmetic masking in NTT pipelines, but watch out: even a single lapse in "fresh masking" can expose vulnerabilities, as seen in the Adams Bridge accelerator.

Forget enumerating billions of cases: a five-line Lean proof now universally validates a core theorem for formally verifying masked post-quantum crypto hardware.

Forget weeks of manual review: this new verification pipeline slashes the effort needed to find side-channel vulnerabilities in post-quantum crypto hardware, delivering mathematical certificates for actionable candidates.