MJRC · Technology & public communication
Secure Internet Observatory
Tracking how encryption, quantum networks and digital provenance reshape journalism, public trust and the distribution of power online.
The Observatory
Why this matters
Communication security is changing. Governments, researchers and infrastructure providers are developing post-quantum cryptography, quantum communication networks and systems that record the origin and history of digital content.
These choices will shape who can communicate safely, who controls the infrastructure and who is left outside it. The Observatory examines this transition through its consequences for journalism, media freedom and democratic institutions, as part of MJRC’s 2026–2028 strategy (PDF) (opens in a new tab).
Research areas
What we track
The technologies, institutions and decisions shaping the security of public communication.
Journalism and source protection
How changing encryption standards affect confidential communication, source safety, the long-term protection of archives and newsroom verification.
Authenticity and public trust
How provenance tools and synthetic media influence verification, disinformation and confidence in civic information, including elections and public services.
Governance and market power
Who sets standards and controls infrastructure; how national strategies, regulation and market concentration shape openness, accountability and access for media organisations.
Access across borders
Whether emerging networks can work together, and how fragmented standards or politically bounded systems affect smaller newsrooms, diaspora media and cross-border investigations.
Publications
Read the research
Full Observatory outputs are published on the Media and Journalism Exchange (opens in a new tab), alongside datasets, interviews, explainers and tools for journalists and researchers. Selected highlights appear on the MJRC website.
Quantum Moves From Lab to Infrastructure
Read the Signal Brief (opens in a new tab)Available to registered Exchange members.
Publication formats
- Signal BriefsMonthly
Concise updates on developments affecting public trust and journalism safety.
- Insight ReportsQuarterly
In-depth analysis of trends shaping communication infrastructure and the information environment.
- State of the Secure InternetAnnual report
An assessment of structural change and its consequences for society, democracy and media.
- Flash NotesAs developments warrant
Rapid analysis of events with immediate implications for civic information rights or media freedom.
Our approach
How we work
We combine technical monitoring, policy analysis and media research to connect changes in infrastructure with their public consequences.
Independent of technology vendors and infrastructure providers.
Follow technologies and policy
We review academic research, standards proposals, national strategies and regulatory developments. Continuous horizon scanning tracks pilot deployments, vulnerabilities, market dynamics and geopolitical shifts.
Learn from specialists
Expert interviews draw on the knowledge of quantum scientists, cryptographers, network engineers, cybersecurity specialists and participants in standards-setting processes.
Map the consequences for media
We examine how media organisations are affected by emerging infrastructure, where they face exclusion and how access, inequality and vulnerability differ across regions and communities.
Key concepts
The technologies in context
Three distinct developments underpin this research.
Post-quantum cryptography
Algorithms designed to protect information against attacks by both conventional and quantum computers, using today’s computing systems. NIST finalised its first set of standards in 2024.
The timing of a quantum computer capable of breaking current public-key encryption remains uncertain. Migration matters now because sensitive information intercepted today could be decrypted in the future, a risk known as “harvest now, decrypt later”.
Quantum communication
Communication technologies that use quantum physics, including quantum key distribution to establish shared encryption keys. These involve physical infrastructure and have different requirements from post-quantum algorithms. Their real-world security depends on implementation and wider system design.
Read NIST’s quantum cryptography explainer (opens in a new tab)
Digital provenance
Records about where a piece of content came from and how it has changed. Standards such as C2PA let publishers attach signed provenance information, including production and editing details.
These records help users inspect an item’s history. Establishing whether its claims are accurate still requires reporting and verification.
Read the C2PA and Content Credentials explainer (opens in a new tab)
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