“Quantum computers that are expected to be operational around the year 2026 will be easily undermine any blockchain security system due to their efficiency. “David Williams, founder of the quantum encryption company Arqit, made this dramatic forecast to Forbes and called on the developers of the blockchains to” more urgency “.
Cardano inventor Hoskinson also confirms quantum danger
Developer of blockchains would have to deal proactively with the upcoming quantum age and adapt their technologies accordingly in good time. Williams suggests the use of so-called quantum encryption keys. This is not surprising, because it is the product of his company with which he wants to go public on the New York Stock Exchange via SPAC in December.
In fact, the imminent availability of quantum technology is a problem for all areas that work with encryption. This has also recognized the Ethereum and Cardano inventors Charles Hoskinson, who is known for scientifically validating every development step of his new project.
Hoskinson wants to have his project prepared in good time before the serious market entry of commercial quantum computers and is also calling on the developers of other crypto currencies to do so to take the threat seriously and devote resources to it. Hoskinson does not share Williams’ ambitious forecast that this should be the case as early as 2026.
“Quantum secure blockchains” would have competitive advantages
“If this is not addressed before quantum computers pose a threat, the effects would be massive,” says Duncan Jones, head of quantum cybersecurity at Cambridge Quantum Computing. Attackers could carry out “fraudulent transactions” and generally disrupt blockchain operations.
That is why it is particularly important for decentralized networks to start the migration process as quickly as possible, since it requires “careful planning and execution”. If, however, a blockchain can prove that it is “quantum secure”, according to Jones, it has a considerable competitive advantage.
Earlier this month, Cambridge Quantum Computing, together with the Inter-American Development Bank and the Tecnológico de Monterrey, identified four potential threats to blockchain Identified networks emanating from quantum computers. Jones suggests using a post-quantum cryptography layer along with a new generation of quantum-secure cryptographic keys for protection.
Jones assumes that the creation of a quantum computer would not destroy everything on the first day. Rather, the use will “initially be done in secret”. Only slowly will the information leak out that “the cryptography has been broken”. However, that would then lead to a “complete loss of confidence”, “similar to the global financial crisis, when confidence in the system fell apart.”
Jones is particularly concerned about the fact that China is ahead in the global quantum race. This could undermine both the traditional and the crypto markets to a similar extent as it was the case during the global financial crisis in 2008.
Companies and universities are feverishly researching quantum technologies
Quantum informatics, in which conventional computer bits are replaced by quantum particles (qubits), which can calculate information at a considerably higher speed, has existed since 1990s in development. Researchers at universities around the world are developing working quantum computers. The progress is exponential. The research of the last five years has brought more knowledge than the research of the previous three decades.
The search engine giant Google presented its own Quantum AI campus in May 2021, in which several billion US dollars are being invested. The first commercial quantum computer is to be built here by 2029. The project remains ambitious. It is true that companies are now in a position to actually receive all of the components required for quantum projects. Nevertheless, there are a number of major challenges that have to be overcome on the way to becoming a mega-computer.
