AnkaSecure vs Azure Key Vault

Multi-cloud flexibility with PQC vs Azure-only classical cryptography

📊 Compare pricing in 3 minutes

Quick Comparison: Test Both Platforms

Estimated time: 10 minutes What you'll compare: PQC support, multi-cloud portability, encryption speed Requirements: Azure subscription + AnkaSecure trial

AnkaSecure Test (3 minutes)

# Generate PQC key (quantum-resistant!)
curl -X POST https://api.ankatech.co/keys \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -d '{"algorithm":"ML_KEM_1024"}'

# Encrypt data (works on ANY cloud: AWS, Azure, GCP, on-prem)
curl -X POST https://api.ankatech.co/encrypt \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -d '{"keyId":"mlkem-001","plaintext":"Multi-cloud data"}'

✅ Result: Quantum-resistant, cloud-agnostic, 3ms latency

Azure Key Vault Test (5 minutes)

# Azure CLI: Create key (classical RSA only)
az keyvault key create \
  --vault-name myVault \
  --name myKey \
  --kty RSA \
  --size 4096

# Encrypt data (Azure-only, NOT quantum-resistant)
az keyvault key encrypt \
  --vault-name myVault \
  --name myKey \
  --algorithm RSA-OAEP-256 \
  --value "test data"

❌ Limitation: No PQC support, Azure-only (vendor lock-in)

Side-by-Side Results

🎯 Key insight: AnkaSecure = quantum-ready + multi-cloud, Azure = Azure-native + classical only

Feature Comparison

At a Glance

When to Choose AnkaSecure

1. You Need Post-Quantum Cryptography

Scenario: Healthcare SaaS with 30-year patient data retention

Problem with Azure: - ❌ No PQC support (RSA, EC, AES only) - ❌ No roadmap announced (as of Jan 2026) - ❌ Quantum threat to long-lived data

AnkaSecure solution: - ✅ ML-KEM-1024 (quantum-resistant for 30+ years) - ✅ Composite keys (RSA + ML-KEM hybrid during transition) - ✅ HIPAA + quantum compliance

Example: Encrypt patient records

curl -X POST https://api.ankatech.co/encrypt \
  -d '{
    "algorithm":"ML_KEM_1024",
    "plaintext":"Patient: John Doe, DOB: 1990-05-15...",
    "retention":"30_YEARS"
  }'

2. You're Multi-Cloud (Azure + AWS + On-Prem)

Scenario: Enterprise using Azure AND AWS, want unified key management

Problem with Azure Key Vault: - ❌ Azure-only (cannot manage AWS keys) - ❌ Vendor lock-in (keys stored in Azure) - ❌ Azure SDK required (code tied to Azure)

AnkaSecure solution: - ✅ Cloud-agnostic (works with Azure, AWS, GCP, on-prem) - ✅ Import keys from all sources (Azure PKCS#12, AWS public keys) - ✅ Unified API (same SDK across all clouds) - ✅ Portable keys (export anytime, no lock-in)

Example: Manage keys from Azure + AWS + on-prem in one platform

3. You Need True On-Premise (Not Just Managed HSM)

Scenario: Government agency, air-gapped network, classified data

Problem with Azure: - ❌ Azure Key Vault: Cloud-only (data goes to Azure) - ⚠️ Azure Managed HSM: Azure-connected (not air-gapped) - ❌ No offline deployment (requires internet to Azure)

AnkaSecure solution: - ✅ Deploy in YOUR data center (full control) - ✅ Air-gapped mode (no internet required) - ✅ FISMA, FedRAMP, ITAR compliance possible

Example: Classified document encryption in SCIF

4. You Want Cost Predictability

Scenario: High-volume SaaS (10M encryptions/month)

Azure Key Vault pricing (complex):

Standard tier:
  $0.03 per 10,000 operations (encrypt/decrypt/sign/verify)
  + $0.125 per secret/key/certificate per month

10M operations = $30/month (operations)
+ 100 keys × $0.125 = $12.50/month (keys)

Total: $42.50/month = $510/year (Standard tier)

BUT: Standard tier has limits (no HSM, no Premium features)

Azure Managed HSM (for production):

$1.08 per HSM hour = $777.60/month per HSM
+ Operations included (unlimited)

3 HSMs (HA) = $2,333/month = $28,000/year

AnkaSecure on-premise:

License: $25,000/year (unlimited operations)
+ Infrastructure: $15,000/year (6-node cluster)

Total: $40,000/year (unlimited ops, unlimited keys)

Comparison: - Azure Standard: $510/year (limited, no HSM) - Azure Managed HSM: $28,000/year (HSM-backed) - AnkaSecure: $40,000/year (HSM-backed + PQC + multi-cloud)

Verdict: AnkaSecure better value for enterprise (HSM + PQC + portability)

Feature Deep-Dive

Post-Quantum Cryptography

Critical for: Federal contracts (CNSA 2.0 deadline 2030), long-lived data

Deployment Options

Critical for: Multi-cloud strategy, data sovereignty, classified networks

Algorithm Support

Crypto-agility: AnkaSecure 4× more algorithm options

Key Management

Migration impact: Azure lock-in (HSM keys cannot export) vs AnkaSecure portability

Performance & Limits

Use case fit: - Azure: Low-volume, Azure-native apps - AnkaSecure: High-volume, multi-cloud, large files

Pricing Comparison

Standard Tier Comparison

Azure Key Vault Standard (10M operations/month):

Operations: 10M × $0.03/10K = $30,000/month
+ Keys: 100 × $0.125 = $12.50/month

Total: $30,012.50/month = $360,150/year

AnkaSecure On-Premise (unlimited operations):

License: $25,000/year
+ Infrastructure: $15,000/year

Total: $40,000/year

Savings: $320,150/year (89% reduction)

Premium/Managed HSM Comparison

Azure Managed HSM (3 HSMs for HA):

HSM cost: 3 × $1.08/hour = $3.24/hour
Total: $3.24 × 24 × 365 = $28,382/year

+ Operations: Included (unlimited)
+ Premium features: Included

Total: $28,382/year

AnkaSecure On-Premise + Luna HSM:

AnkaSecure license: $25,000/year
+ Luna HSM: ~$20,000 (one-time, 3 devices)
+ Infrastructure: $15,000/year

Year 1: $60,000
Year 2+: $40,000/year (no HSM re-purchase)

5-year TCO: - Azure Managed HSM: $141,910 - AnkaSecure + Luna: $160,000

Verdict: Azure slightly cheaper for HSM-backed (if Azure-only is acceptable)

BUT: AnkaSecure adds PQC + multi-cloud (Azure doesn't have)

When to Choose AnkaSecure

1. You Need Post-Quantum Cryptography

Scenario: Financial services with 10-year regulatory retention

Problem with Azure: - ❌ No PQC algorithms (RSA, EC, AES only) - ❌ No announced PQC roadmap (as of Jan 2026) - ❌ Quantum threat to long-lived data

AnkaSecure solution: - ✅ NIST FIPS 203/204/205 algorithms - ✅ Composite keys (RSA + ML-KEM) - ✅ Federal compliance (CNSA 2.0, GSA PQC)

PQC implementation guide

2. You're Multi-Cloud or Hybrid Cloud

Scenario: Using Azure for compute, AWS for storage, on-prem for databases

Problem with Azure Key Vault: - ❌ Azure-only (cannot encrypt AWS S3 data directly) - ❌ Cross-cloud egress costs (data to Azure for encryption) - ❌ Azure SDK dependency (vendor lock-in)

AnkaSecure solution: - ✅ Cloud-agnostic (deploy anywhere) - ✅ Encrypt in-place (no data movement) - ✅ Unified API (same SDK for all clouds)

Example: Encrypt AWS S3 data with AnkaSecure (deployed on AWS)

3. You Need Air-Gapped Deployment

Scenario: Defense contractor, classified network, SCIF environment

Problem with Azure: - ❌ Azure Key Vault: Requires internet to Azure (cloud-only) - ❌ Azure Managed HSM: Still requires Azure connectivity - ❌ No offline mode (cannot deploy in air-gapped)

AnkaSecure solution: - ✅ Full air-gapped deployment (no internet required) - ✅ Offline license validation (cryptographic license files) - ✅ Manual updates (via secure file transfer)

Use case: SCIF, classified data processing, ITAR compliance

4. You Want Algorithm Flexibility

Scenario: Need crypto-agility (change algorithms quickly)

Azure Key Vault algorithms: - Symmetric: AES-128/192/256-GCM, AES-CBC - Asymmetric: RSA-2048/3072/4096, EC-P256/P384/P521 - Total: ~18 algorithms

AnkaSecure algorithms: - Symmetric: 19 (AES, ChaCha20, Camellia, SEED, SM4, ARIA) - Asymmetric Classical: 20 (RSA, ECDSA, EdDSA) - Post-Quantum: 42 (ML-KEM, ML-DSA, SLH-DSA, Falcon, etc.) - Total: 81 algorithms (4× more choice)

Benefit: Future-proof (can adopt new algorithms as standards evolve)

5. You Need Large File Encryption

Scenario: Encrypt video files (5-50 GB), database backups, logs

Azure Key Vault limitation: - ❌ Max 256 KB per operation (Standard tier) - ❌ Max 256 KB per operation (Managed HSM) - ❌ For large files, must use envelope encryption (complex client-side logic)

AnkaSecure solution: - ✅ Streaming APIs (up to 100 GB tested) - ✅ Constant memory usage (no size limit) - ✅ Throughput: ~80 MB/s per node

Example: Encrypt 50 GB backup in 10 minutes

curl -X POST https://api.ankatech.co/stream/encrypt \
  -F "[email protected]" \
  -F "algorithm=ML_KEM_1024"

When Azure Key Vault Fits Better

1. Deep Azure Integration

If you're using: - Azure Storage (encryption at rest with CMK) - Azure SQL (TDE with Key Vault CMK) - Azure VMs (disk encryption) - Azure Functions (secrets management)

Azure advantage: Native integration (zero configuration)

Example: Azure SQL TDE with Key Vault

-- Enable Transparent Data Encryption (one command)
ALTER DATABASE myDB
SET ENCRYPTION ON
WITH (ENCRYPTION_KEY = MyKeyVaultKey);

AnkaSecure alternative: API integration (requires code, but adds PQC)

2. Low-Volume Workloads (< 500K ops/month)

Cost comparison:

Break-even: ~400K operations/month

When to use Azure: Small projects, prototypes, low-volume apps (< 400K ops/month)

3. Need Azure Compliance (Azure Gov, DoD)

Azure Government Cloud: FedRAMP High, DoD IL5 authorized

If you need: - Azure Government Cloud (US federal data residency) - DoD Impact Level 5 (IL5) authorization - FedRAMP High ATO (inherited from Azure)

Azure Key Vault advantage: Inherits Azure Gov compliance

BUT: Still no PQC (cannot meet CNSA 2.0 by 2030)

AnkaSecure alternative: FedRAMP in progress (Q4 2027), but PQC available today

Azure Managed HSM vs AnkaSecure

Detailed Comparison

Use case fit: - Azure Managed HSM: Azure-native, no PQC needs, high compliance (FedRAMP High) - AnkaSecure + Luna: Multi-cloud, PQC required, portability important

Migration from Azure to AnkaSecure

Export Keys from Azure

Azure Key Vault supports export (unlike AWS KMS):

Step 1: Export key from Azure

# PowerShell: Export certificate with private key
$cert = Get-AzKeyVaultCertificate -VaultName "myVault" -Name "myKey"
$secret = Get-AzKeyVaultSecret -VaultName "myVault" -Name $cert.Name
$pfxBytes = [Convert]::FromBase64String($secret.SecretValueText)
[IO.File]::WriteAllBytes("azure-key.pfx", $pfxBytes)

Step 2: Import to AnkaSecure

# Convert PFX to Base64
P12_BASE64=$(base64 -i azure-key.pfx)

# Import to AnkaSecure
curl -X POST https://api.ankatech.co/migration/private-keys \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -d '{
    "kid": "azure-migrated-key",
    "p12FileBase64": "'$P12_BASE64'",
    "p12Password": ""
  }'

✅ Success: Azure key now in AnkaSecure (portable!)

Note: Azure Managed HSM keys CANNOT export (vendor lock-in, same as AWS KMS)

Data Migration

Step 1: Decrypt data in Azure

# Azure: Decrypt existing data
az keyvault key decrypt \
  --vault-name myVault \
  --name myKey \
  --algorithm RSA-OAEP-256 \
  --value $CIPHERTEXT > plaintext.dat

Step 2: Re-encrypt with AnkaSecure (quantum-resistant!)

curl -X POST https://api.ankatech.co/encrypt \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -F "algorithm=ML_KEM_1024" \
  -F "[email protected]"

Timeline: ~100 files/minute (for 1KB files)

Security: Plaintext exists briefly during migration (use secure transfer over mTLS)

Technical Comparison

API Complexity

Azure Key Vault encrypt:

// Azure SDK (C#)
var client = new KeyClient(new Uri($"https://{vaultName}.vault.azure.net/"), credential);
var key = await client.GetKeyAsync("myKey");

var cryptoClient = new CryptographyClient(key.Value.Id, credential);
var result = await cryptoClient.EncryptAsync(
    EncryptionAlgorithm.RsaOaep256,
    Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes("plaintext")
);
byte[] ciphertext = result.Ciphertext;

AnkaSecure encrypt:

// AnkaSecure SDK (C# - coming soon, Java available)
var client = new AnkaSecureClient(apiKey);
var result = await client.EncryptAsync(new EncryptRequest {
    Algorithm = "ML_KEM_1024",
    Plaintext = Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes("plaintext")
});
byte[] ciphertext = result.Ciphertext;

Simplicity: Similar complexity, but AnkaSecure supports more algorithms

Error Handling

Azure errors (Azure-specific):

KeyVaultErrorException
RequestFailedException (Azure.Core)
AuthenticationFailedException

AnkaSecure errors (HTTP standard):

400 Bad Request
401 Unauthorized
404 Not Found
429 Too Many Requests

Debugging: AnkaSecure uses standard HTTP codes (easier with existing tools)

Cost Calculator

Calculate Your Savings

Key insights: - Low volume (< 400K ops): Azure Standard cheapest - Medium volume (400K-10M ops): AnkaSecure SaaS cheapest - High volume (> 10M ops): AnkaSecure on-prem cheapest - HSM-backed: Azure Managed HSM flat-rate ($28K/year), AnkaSecure variable

📊 Interactive calculator

When to Migrate from Azure

Checklist: Should You Migrate?

• [ ] Do you need post-quantum cryptography? (Azure has no PQC)
• [ ] Are you multi-cloud (Azure + AWS + on-prem)? (Azure is Azure-only)
• [ ] Do you have > 500K operations/month? (Cost savings apply)
• [ ] Do you need air-gapped deployment? (Azure requires internet)
• [ ] Do you encrypt files > 256 KB? (Azure max payload limit)
• [ ] Do you need algorithm flexibility? (81 vs 18 algorithms)
• [ ] Do you have data retention > 10 years? (Quantum threat relevant)

If you checked 3+ boxes: AnkaSecure likely a better fit

📧 Schedule migration assessment

Hybrid Approach: Azure + AnkaSecure

Use Both for Different Purposes

Azure Key Vault for: - Azure Storage encryption keys (CMK) - Azure SQL TDE keys - Azure AD credentials - VM disk encryption keys

AnkaSecure for: - Customer data encryption (PQC-ready) - Multi-cloud data (AWS S3 + Azure Blob) - Large file encryption (> 256 KB) - Federal compliance (CNSA 2.0)

Example architecture:

Azure VMs → Azure Key Vault (infrastructure keys)
          ↓
Application → AnkaSecure (customer data, PQC)

Benefit: Use each tool for its strength (infrastructure vs data)

What's Next?

Ready to compare? - 📊 Feature matrix (detailed comparison) - 📊 Cost calculator (TCO comparison) - 📥 Download comparison guide (PDF, 10 pages) - 📧 Schedule technical review (free 1-hour session)

Explore alternatives: - vs AWS KMS - AWS comparison - vs HashiCorp Vault - Open-source alternative

Migration resources: - Import from Azure - PKCS#12 export guide - Performance comparison - Detailed benchmarks - On-premise deployment - Self-hosted option

Have questions? Email [email protected] or join our community forum

Last updated: 2026-01-07 | Azure data current as of January 2026 | Pricing subject to change