Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided for reducing latency and/or delays in performing a security activation exchange between a communication device and a network entity. The communication device may pre-compute a plurality of possible keys using a base key and a plurality of possible inputs in anticipation of receiving an indicator from the network entity that identifies a selected input to be used in generating a corresponding selected key. An indicator is then received from the network entity, where the indicator identifies the selected input from among the plurality of possible inputs. The communication device then selects a first key among the pre-computed plurality of possible keys as the selected key upon receipt of the indicator, wherein the first key is selected because it was pre-computed using the selected input. Because the first key is pre-computed, delays in responding to the network entity are reduced.