Research: Quantum Computers Can Decipher Private Keys of Cryptocurrencies

On July 16, 2018, academic outlet The Conversation highlighted a method utilizing powerful quantum computers to decipher Bitcoin's algorithms with ease.

The difficulty has significantly increased over the years, and current computer systems are not powerful enough.

While traditional computers cannot compute a user's sensitive signatures, quantum computers could potentially solve them with efficiency - as they utilize mechanical interactions between two datasets instead of using digital information for calculations.

As observed by the report, the fast-evolving quantum computing sector effectively works towards solving the algorithms predominantly used by the relatively outdated cryptography industry - over which Bitcoin is primarily based on.

The fundamental "Elliptic curves cryptography" techniques can calculate private keys using just the public key data, a feat unmatched by computers of today.

As per Bitcoin's whitepaper, the pioneer cryptocurrency's public keys were meant to be viewed by the network only when a transaction was requested.

This entails a short period for an attacker to view the public key and deploy a quantum computer for nefarious intentions.

Several public keys are stored on the blockchain, eliminating the time constraint for quantum computer-armed attackers.

Researchers must understand these implications far before an attack takes place and develop the relevant mechanism to supersede elliptic curve cryptography, the protocol susceptible to quantum computers.

In conclusion, the report noted that several cryptocurrency projects have considered this aspect and are considering the threat from quantum computers in their development.