NIST Post-Quantum Migration Checklist
A practical checklist for moving encryption, authentication, and signatures from RSA/ECC to NIST-aligned post-quantum cryptography.
1Identify RSA/ECC exposure
- Audit TLS termination points (load balancers, reverse proxies, API gateways)
- Inventory certificate chains (internal CA, public CA, client certificates)
- Map API authentication methods (JWT signing, HMAC, OAuth tokens)
- Identify code signing in CI/CD pipelines
- Run HICS scan for automated classical crypto detection
2Prioritize by confidentiality window
- Immediate: medical records, financial data, legal communications
- Soon: authentication tokens, session keys, API credentials
- Planned: internal systems, dev environments, non-sensitive flows
3Map what changes
- Key exchange: RSA/ECDH → ML-KEM (FIPS 203)
- Signatures: RSA/ECDSA → ML-DSA (FIPS 204)
- Certificates: X.509 with PQ algorithm support
- Auth: token signing with post-quantum keys
- What stays: AES-256, SHA-256/SHA-3, application logic, network arch
4Choose deployment mode
- Hybrid: run ML-KEM + ECDH in parallel (NIST recommended for transition)
- Full PQ: replace classical entirely (for new systems or high-risk data)
- API abstraction: route through H33 — no library or cert changes needed
5Integrate ML-KEM and ML-DSA
- Option A: SDK integration (Rust, Python, Node, Go)
- Option B: API integration (one endpoint, H33 handles everything)
- Option C: Hybrid proxy (route TLS through PQ-capable gateway)
6Create compliance evidence
- Generate H33-74 attestations for every PQ operation
- Enable HATS continuous compliance attestation
- Document migration for SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA auditors
7Test and measure
- Benchmark latency impact (H33: 1.36ms full pipeline)
- Verify key sizes don't break bandwidth constraints
- Test rollback path (classical stack still operational)
8Roll out by system criticality
- High-value data systems first (HNDL defense)
- Authentication and session management second
- Internal and development systems last
- Enable HATS for continuous drift detection
Key takeaway:
NIST post-quantum migration requires replacing asymmetric cryptography (RSA, ECC) with ML-KEM and ML-DSA. Symmetric encryption and hash functions are already quantum-safe. The migration surface is narrower than most organizations expect.
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