Quantum computing could undermine widely used public-key encryption, driving research into quantum-resistant algorithms and secure migration planning.
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Background for this topic.
Quantum computing uses quantum-mechanical effects in qubits to solve some problems differently from conventional computers. In information security, its significance is primarily cryptographic: a sufficiently capable, fault-tolerant quantum computer could use Shor’s algorithm to break RSA and elliptic-curve cryptography, which protect certificates, key exchanges, signatures, and encrypted archives. Quantum computing is not expected to break all cryptography equally; symmetric encryption and cryptographic hashes generally require larger security parameters rather than replacement for the same reason.
The practical concern is “harvest now, decrypt later”: adversaries can collect encrypted traffic today for future decryption, especially when data must remain confidential for years. Organizations should inventory public-key algorithms and long-lived sensitive data, assess dependencies such as certificates and protocols, and plan migration to standardized post-quantum cryptography with crypto-agile systems. Quantum key distribution is a separate, specialized communications approach; it does not replace endpoint security, authentication, or conventional key-management controls and has significant deployment constraints.
Ising Model Family Targets Calibration, Error Correction at ScaleNvidia released what it calls the world's first family of open AI models built to reduce errors in quantum computers in a bid to tackle problems blocking the technology's path to practical use. Nvidia is focusing on software, AI models and tools that work alongside quantum hardware.
Quantum computers are coming and may impact systems in unexpected ways, and it will "take years to be fully quantum-safe, if ever," cryptography expert warns.
OT asset owners are being asked by regulators to attest to their post-quantum cryptographic readiness without the appropriate tooling, resulting in paperwork dressed up to look like genuine security.