Trojan Attacks on Variational Quantum Circuits and Countermeasures

Subrata Das, Swaroop Ghosh

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

Abstract

Quantum computing holds tremendous potential for various applications, but its security remains a crucial concern. Quantum circuits need high-quality compilers to optimize the depth and gate count to boost the success probability on current noisy quantum computers. There is a rise of efficient but unreliable/untrusted compilers; however, they present a risk of tampering, such as malicious insertion of Trojans, which can degrade circuit performance and reliability. This work focuses on analyzing the impact of Trojans in Quantum Approximate Optimization Algorithm (QAOA) circuits, which are widely used for solving combinatorial optimization problems. We propose a methodology to reveal vulnerable locations and adversarial gate types for Trojan insertion that maximizes the negative impact on QAOA's approximation ratio in solving Max-Cut problem. By disrupting critical paths and altering qubit states, the strategic insertion of additional gates degrade the approximation ratio by up to 50% based on evaluations on benchmark graphs. These insights on plausible attack mechanisms advance the understanding of optimization-oriented Trojan vulnerabilities specific to quantum computing. Additionally, a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) model, referred to as QTrojanNet, is presented to detect the presence of Trojans in compiled QAOA circuits by learning inherent features that indicate malicious modifications. Experimental results showcase an average accuracy of 98.80% and an average F1-score of 98.53% in effectively detecting and classifying Trojan-inserted QAOA circuits.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationProceedings of the 25th International Symposium on Quality Electronic Design, ISQED 2024
PublisherIEEE Computer Society
ISBN (Electronic)9798350309270
DOIs
StatePublished - 2024
Event25th International Symposium on Quality Electronic Design, ISQED 2024 - Hybrid, San Francisco, United States
Duration: Apr 3 2024Apr 5 2024

Publication series

NameProceedings - International Symposium on Quality Electronic Design, ISQED
ISSN (Print)1948-3287
ISSN (Electronic)1948-3295

Conference

Conference25th International Symposium on Quality Electronic Design, ISQED 2024
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityHybrid, San Francisco
Period4/3/244/5/24

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Hardware and Architecture
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering
  • Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality

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