A basic idea according to the invention is to enhance or update the basic
cryptographic security algorithms by an algorithm-specific modification
of the security key information generated in the normal key agreement
procedure of the mobile communication system. For communication with the
mobile terminal, the network side normally selects an enhanced version of
one of the basic cryptographic security algorithms supported by the
mobile, and transmits information representative of the selected
algorithm to the mobile terminal. The basic security key resulting from
the key agreement procedure (AKA, 10) between the mobile terminal and the
network is then modified (22) in dependence on the selected algorithm to
generate an algorithm-specific security key. The basic security algorithm
(24) is then applied with this algorithm-specific security key as key
input to enhance security for protected communication in the mobile
communications network.