Trust, Not Just Technology, Will Decide Whether the Quantum Internet Delivers Secure Communication

Researchers argue that the quantum internet’s central promise — intrinsically secure communication delivered purely through technical design — cannot be fulfilled by hardware and software alone. In a paper published in the journal Ethics and Society, Pieter E. Vermaas, Luca M. Possati and Zeki C. Seskir examine the governance of the quantum internet, a new type of network that distributes quantum information across distances.

The authors analyse the functions the quantum internet is expected to offer, ranging from secure communication to linking quantum computers and quantum sensors. They then challenge the widely repeated claim that security can be guaranteed by the network’s technical features alone, arguing instead that trust is an essential precondition for users to adopt the technology.

According to the paper, trust is fundamentally a social phenomenon. It is shaped by how the quantum internet is governed, operated and regulated, rather than being an automatic consequence of the physics underlying the network. The authors therefore conclude that the ultimate success of the quantum internet in fulfilling its promise of secure communication will depend not just on its technical hardware and software, but also on the policies and frameworks for running these capacities, and on public trust in those policies and frameworks.

The analysis arrives at a number of recommendations for decision-makers who are developing the quantum internet and its governance. One proposal is that the organizations delivering the hardware, the operators of the network, and the regulators should be kept apart, so that each can serve as an independent source of trust for users.

A second recommendation concerns oversight. The authors suggest that third-party organizations can provide independent checks for users on how the quantum internet is being operated.

Transparency also features prominently in the recommendations. The paper argues that transparency in the policing of communication enables trust in the regulation of the quantum internet, linking openness about enforcement directly to users’ confidence in the system.

The broader context for the argument is the accelerating development of quantum technologies over the last decade. The authors describe these technologies as emerging technologies that now need explicit attention from decision-makers at national funding agencies, companies and governments. The quantum internet, as a network designed to distribute quantum information across distances, sits within this wider governance challenge.

The paper’s central message is that the promise of intrinsically secure communication is conditional. Whether the quantum internet can be trusted for its promised capacities will depend on governance arrangements — independent hardware providers, operators and regulators, independent third-party checks, and transparent policing — as much as on the quantum technologies themselves.

Subject of Research: Governance and trust in the emerging quantum internet and its promise of secure communication

Article Title: Quantum Internet, Governance, Trust, and the Promise of Secure Communication

Article References: Vermaas, P. E., Possati, L. M., & Seskir, Z. C. (2026). Quantum Internet, Governance, Trust, and the Promise of Secure Communication. Ethics and Society. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11569-026-00516-0

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1007/s11569-026-00516-0

Keywords: quantum internet, governance, trust, secure communication, quantum technologies, regulation, technology policy, quantum computing, quantum sensors, ethics, Quantum, Internet