The arrival of quantum computing has long been the anticipated point of no return for the crypto industry. A computer capable of cracking blockchain encryption could lead to the rapid theft of once untouchable user funds, and not in small amounts either.

Chinese researchers using a quantum computer have already made a breakthrough, claiming they’ve cracked encryption algorithms used in banking, the military, and cryptocurrency.

Quantum Computing vs. Crypto Security

Despite the slow progress in general-purpose quantum computing, which currently poses no immediate threat to modern cryptography, scientists are exploring various approaches to attacks using specialized quantum computers.

Researchers from Shanghai University, led by Wang Chao, claim they’ve used a quantum computer made by Canada’s D-Wave Systems to crack encryption algorithms using a process called quantum annealing, which involves finding the lowest energy state.

Their targets to algorithms like Present, Gift-64, and Rectangle, the backbone of the Substitution-Permutation Network (SPN) structure, which supports advanced encryption standards (AES) widely used to secure crypto wallets.

Now, while AES-256 is considered one of the most secure encryption standards available, the researchers suggest that quantum computers could soon pose a threat, with their breakthrough potentially undermining long-standing password protection mechanisms.

In Wang’s paper, the quantum annealing method they used is described as similar to an artificial intelligence algorithm capable of optimizing solutions on a global scale.

Picture yourself in a maze. A regular computer has to walk through all the hallways to find the exit, while a quantum computer can “slip” through the walls, shortening the path. This helps it find solutions faster, while traditional computers take the scenic route.

At the same time, the researchers clarified that the quantum computer attack didn’t reveal specific passwords used in the tested algorithms, but it did achieve more than anyone had before.

They noted that further developments could lead to more robust quantum attacks in the future, potentially uncovering new vulnerabilities in existing cryptographic systems.

Why You Don’t Need to Worry About Ethereum Getting Hacked by Quantum Computers

In a March blog post for Ethereum Research, Vitalik Buterin addressed what would happen if a “quantum emergency” occurred tomorrow. Turns out, a simple hard fork could solve the issue.

Vitalik explains:

I argue that we are already well-prepared to create a fairly straightforward recovery fork to deal with such a situation.

In simple terms, this process would involve rolling back the Ethereum network to a point where it’s clear that “large-scale theft” is happening and freezing all traditional transactions from that moment on. Users would need to download new wallet software, but very few would lose their funds.

He also added that the infrastructure needed to implement such a hard fork “could, in principle, start being built tomorrow.”

Here’s a bit more peace of mind: most scientists and computing experts believe quantum computing is still far off. According to engineers from Google and IBM, we won’t see quantum computers with that kind of power until at least 2029. So, no need to panic just yet!

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