It's been the goal of spies and mathematicians for thousands of years - an uncrackable code that can be used to send top-secret information around the globe with perfect security. And it's needed now more than ever. As information becomes an increasingly valuable commodity, the future stability of the world will depend on its development.

There is still a way to go. But this goal is closer than many people realise, particularly those living in Canberra.

Just such an unbreakable code was recently flashed more than four kilometres through the skies above the national capital, from the Telstra Tower to the University of Canberra. It was an Australian first, and a significant step towards a time when the new codes, known as quantum cryptographic keys, will be beamed around the world via satellites.

[ Read more ]