Cryptanalysis and Improvement for the Quantum Private Comparison Protocol Based on Triplet Entangled State and Single-Particle Measurement

Quantum private comparison (QPC) aims to accomplish the equality comparison of secret inputs from two users on the basis of not leaking their contents out. Recently, Chen et al. proposed the QPC protocol based on triplet GHZ state and single-particle measurement (Optics Communications 283, 1561–1565 (2010)). In this paper, they suggested the standard model of a semi-honest third party (TP) for the first time, and declared that their protocol is secure. Subsequently, Lin et al. pointed out that in Chen et al.’s protocol, one user can extract the other user’s secret without being discovered by performing the intercept-resend attack, and suggested two corresponding improvements (Optics Communications 284, 2412–2414 (2011)). However, Yang et al. first pointed out that the model of TP adopted by both Chen et al.’s protocol and Lin et al.’s improved protocols is unreasonable, and thought that a practical TP may also try any possible means to steal the users’ secrets except being corrupted by the adversary including the dishonest user (Quantum Inf Process 12, 877–885 (2013). In this paper, after taking the possible attacks from TP into account, we propose the eavesdropping strategy of TP toward Lin et al.’s improved protocols and suggest two feasible solutions accordingly.