Secure and Efficient Quantum Signature Scheme Based on the Controlled Unitary Operations Encryption

Abstract: Quantum digital signatures ensure unforgeable message authenticity and integrity using quantum principles, offering unconditional security against both classical and quantum attacks. They are crucial for secure communication in high-stakes environments, ensuring trust and long-term protection in the quantum era. Nowadays, the majority of arbitrated quantum signature (AQS) protocols encrypt data qubit by qubit using the quantum one-time pad (QOTP). Despite providing robust data encryption, QOTP is not a good fit for AQS because of its susceptibility to many types of attacks. In this work, we present an efficient AQS protocol to encrypt quantum message ensembles using a distinct encryption technique, the chained controlled unitary operations. In contrast to existing protocols, our approach successfully prevents disavowal and forgery attacks. We hope this contributes to advancing future investigations into the development of AQS protocols.