[Cheat Sheet] Post-Quantum Migration: Kyber & Dilithium

As of April 2026, the transition to Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) is no longer theoretical. NIST has finalized FIPS 203 (ML-KEM) and FIPS 204 (ML-DSA). This cheat sheet provides the technical patterns required to migrate your production stacks from classical RSA/ECC to lattice-based primitives.

PQC Overview: ML-KEM & ML-DSA

The migration involves replacing two primary functions: Key Encapsulation (KEM) and Digital Signatures (DSA). Before deploying, ensure sensitive PII is handled correctly using tools like the Data Masking Tool to minimize exposure during the transition phase.

• ML-KEM (Kyber): Used for establishing shared secrets over insecure channels. Standardized in levels 512, 768, and 1024.
• ML-DSA (Dilithium): Used for identity verification and document signing. Standardized in levels 44, 65, and 87.

Core Implementation Commands

Using OpenSSL 3.3+ with the oqs-provider (Open Quantum Safe), you can generate keys and test connectivity natively.

# Generate a ML-KEM-768 Private Key
openssl genpkey -algorithm ml-kem-768 -out pqc_key.pem

# Generate a ML-DSA-65 Key Pair for Signatures
openssl genpkey -algorithm ml-dsa-65 -out dsa_private.pem
openssl pkey -in dsa_private.pem -pubout -out dsa_public.pem

Configuration Templates

Modern web servers require specific cipher suite configurations to support X25519-Kyber768 hybrid negotiation. This allows for security against both classical and future quantum adversaries.

NGINX Configuration (Hybrid TLS 1.3)

server {
    listen 443 ssl http2;
    ssl_certificate /etc/letsencrypt/live/example.com/fullchain.pem;
    ssl_protocols TLSv1.3;
    
    # Enable Hybrid PQC Key Exchange
    ssl_groups x25519_mlkem768:x25519:secp256r1;
}

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