The Quantum Threat to Cryptocurrency: How QRL’s Quantum Secure Blockchain Technology May Be Poised to Revolutionize the Industry – IBM (NYSE:IBM)

Cryptographic protocols that secure networks like Bitcoin and Ethereum are – for now – impenetrable to even the most advanced computers. However, imagine a near-future scenario where computers have advanced to such a level that current cryptographic standards become inadequate.

This potential danger arises from quantum computers, a cutting-edge technology that has the potential to compromise many of the encryption protocols used in cryptocurrencies today. Although quantum computers are in their infancy and not yet powerful enough to do so, experts predict that if current trends continue, they could threaten blockchain networks by 2030.

Quantum Resistant Ledger (QRL) aims to address this doomsday threat as the world’s first post-quantum store of value and decentralized communication network to proactively address the threat posed by advanced quantum computing. The following article will delve deep into the nature of the quantum threat, and explain how QRL is positioned to transform the industry by providing a post-quantum solution.

The quantum threat to cryptocurrency

Before delving into how QRL offers a solution to the quantum threat to cryptocurrency, it is important to understand how quantum computers work and the current risks associated with popular blockchains such as Ethereum and Bitcoin.

What is Quantum Computing?

Quantum computers are a type of supercomputer with far superior processing power than classical computers. They are able to perform many calculations while considering several different configurations – this makes them exponentially faster than traditional computers.

Over the past few years, quantum computing has shown significant progress in various fields, including AI, weather forecasting, and medical research. But in the wrong hands, quantum computing has the potential to pose a significant risk to cybersecurity, and consequently to cryptocurrencies as well.

For example, Google’s 54-qubit Sycamore processor completed a calculation in 200 seconds that would have taken the most powerful classical computer in the world 10,000 years. According to a report from IBM, cryptographic protocols can theoretically be solved within a few hours with quantum computers.

Types of Quantum Attacks

Broadly, traditional cryptocurrencies face two primary types of threats, which are:

• Storage attack: An attack targeting individual wallet addresses attempts to breach their security and steal the cryptocurrency stored in them.
• Transit Attack: An attack that focuses on taking control of all transactions that occur in real time on the network.

Vulnerabilities of existing cryptocurrencies

Bitcoin and Ethereum, the world’s two largest cryptocurrencies, account for almost 60% of the industry’s total market value. Bitcoin as an asset acts like digital gold, providing a decentralized, immutable and secure store of value. Conversely, Ethereum is like a public shared computer network that enables developers to create applications on decentralized servers.

In terms of storage attacks, Ethereum has a higher risk than Bitcoin. A recent Deloitte study revealed that approximately 65% ​​of all Ether is vulnerable to quantum attacks, significantly more than the 25% vulnerable Bitcoin.

Transit attacks, while more serious, are also more challenging to execute. According to Mark Webber at the University of Sussex in the UK, breaking this level of encryption would reportedly require a quantum computer with 1.9 billion qubits of power.

This number is staggering, especially compared to IBM’s IBM the most advanced quantum computer, which has only 127 qubits in comparison. Ethereum’s creator, Vitalik Buterin, tweeted in 2019 that current speculation about quantum computing is as far from real quantum computing as hydrogen bombs are from nuclear fusion. But rapid advances in AI-assisted technology could change the outlook and accelerate the quantum timeline.

QRL’s Quantum-Safe Blockchain Technology

Traditional cryptographic methods such as RSA and Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) rely on computational complexity for security. However, this model is an inefficient long-term solution since quantum computers can solve these methods. QRL says it addresses this vulnerability by creating cryptography based on problems believed to be resistant to quantum attacks, providing increased security in the quantum age.

One of the key components of QRL’s cryptography is the eXtended Merkle Signature Scheme (XMSS). This is a unique mathematical function designed to allow secure and efficient transaction authentication while taking into account the trends of quantum computing.

In addition to securing transactions, QRL leverages advanced techniques such as on-chain key storage and layer-to-internode communication to secure communication on the blockchain.

The way forward for QRL and the cryptocurrency industry?

Overall, although the advent of quantum technology raises concerns, the ongoing development of cryptographic encryption has the potential to surpass the progress of quantum computing.

As quantum computing is still in its infancy, investors and centralized organizations have the opportunity to transition to quantum-resistant cryptography. The situation is much different for decentralized blockchain technology, which post-quantum security analysts insist has a fatal and fundamentally unfixable flaw. QRL does not have this problem, they maintain. In any case, QRL appears to be at the forefront of the post-quantum security frontier and well positioned to provide a secure way for transactions and communication in a post-quantum world.

Featured image by Sunil Ray on Unsplash

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