02 February 2021

US multinational tech giant IBM has launched a new service that allows enterprises to  experiment with fully homomorphic encryption (FHE). The technology is designed to allow data to remain encrypted even when it is being processed and/or analysed in the cloud or third-party environments. 

“The new IBM Security Homomorphic Encryption Services provide companies with education, expert support, and a testing environment for clients to develop prototype applications that can take advantage of FHE,” the company said. 

Building on the groundwork and tools developed by IBM Research and IBM Z, IBM Security Homomorphic Encryption Services offers customers a scalable hosting environment on IBM Cloud, as well as consulting and managed services to help clients learn and design prototype solutions that take advantage of FHE. 

“Fully homomorphic encryption holds tremendous potential for the future of privacy and cloud computing, but businesses must begin learning about and experimenting with FHE before they can take full advantage of what it has to offer,” added Sridhar Muppidi, chief technology officer, IBM Security. “By bringing IBM’s cryptography expertise and resources to our clients that are driving innovation in their unique industries, we can work together to create a new generation of applications that leverage sensitive data, without compromising its privacy.”  

Gartner estimated that by 2025, “at least 20% of companies will have a budget for projects that include fully homomorphic encryption (FHE), up from less than 1% today”, IBM said in a statement.