The Standardization Imperative
While research has proven the cryptographic viability of Homomorphic Encryption (HE), commercial adoption has been hampered by a lack of standardization. Different organizations, often relying on proprietary libraries (like SEAL, HEAAN, or FHEW), encounter significant friction when attempting to share securely processed data. This fragmentation is currently the greatest non-technical hurdle to widespread industrial deployment.
The introduction of an international standard, such as one proposed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), marks a critical inflection point for the HE ecosystem.
Bridging Library Gaps
Currently, data encrypted using one HE library (e.g., CKKS implemented via Microsoft SEAL) cannot be easily processed by another library (e.g., BGV implemented via Google’s HElib). This lack of interoperability forces enterprises into vendor lock-in, limiting their choice of processing environments or partners.
A unified ISO standard would address this by establishing common ground for:
- Ciphertext Format: Defining a universal structure for encrypted data packages, allowing different systems to recognize and process them.
- Security Parameters: Setting globally recognized, minimum security levels (key sizes and noise parameters) to ensure consistency and long-term security across the industry.
- Primitive Consistency: Standardizing basic HE operations and error handling mechanisms.
Driving Regulatory Confidence and Market Adoption
For heavily regulated sectors like finance and healthcare, standards are not optional—they are mandatory for compliance. A recognized ISO standard acts as a seal of approval, signaling to regulators, auditors, and compliance officers that HE is a mature, trustworthy cryptographic technique.
This regulatory confidence directly translates into faster market adoption:
- Reduced Risk: Companies are more willing to invest in HE solutions knowing the underlying cryptography will not become obsolete due to shifting industry preferences.
- Easier Audits: Standardized implementation simplifies the process of proving compliance during internal and external security audits.
Conclusion: A Shift from Research to Engineering
The move toward ISO standardization signals that Homomorphic Encryption is transitioning from being primarily a research topic to a mature engineering discipline. While the technical debate over which specific scheme (BFV, BGV, CKKS) should dominate remains, the collective effort to standardize the interface of these schemes is what will truly unlock the trillion-dollar market potential of private data processing.
The financial community must closely track these standardization efforts, as they will dictate the timeline for enterprise-level deployment of secure, privacy-preserving computation.