How Do We Protect Bitcoin From Quantum Computers? Not With A Joke

Not too long ago, Mission Eleven (a quantum computing analysis group) introduced a 1 bitcoin reward for the primary staff in a position to full a problem to exhibit breaking a ECC (elliptic curve cryptograph) key utilizing Shor’s algorithm on a quantum pc. 

The deadline for this problem is April fifth, 2026, that means in an effort to qualify for the prize a staff should exhibit breaking a key pair it should be performed earlier than that deadline. 

That is frankly a very absurd and meaningless prize for quite a lot of causes, the primary of which is the deadline of just below a yr from immediately. Even extremely optimistic projections in regards to the progress of quantum computing put the timeline of virtually reaching such a objective at extra like 5-10 years. Anticipating a workable proof of idea demonstration that really breaks a keypair in a single yr is fairly laughable at face worth, even in case you do view quantum computing as a cloth menace within the quick time period. 

Subsequent is the issue of financial incentives. A single bitcoin is presently price roughly $80,000. That’s frankly not some huge cash within the grand scheme of issues. Particularly in terms of the appliance of a innovative expertise like quantum computing that may carry out a whole class of computation exponentially sooner than a classical pc. Think about how way more helpful issues may very well be performed with a working quantum pc. 

You may listen in on web connections no matter TLS, breaking safe connections to banks, fairness brokerages, non-public company networks not utilizing post-quantum cryptography. You may break each non-public messenger software on the planet, you may decrypt any PGP encrypted message despatched over e-mail that you simply knew the general public key for. You may break the complete DNS system’s certificates authority hierarchy, permitting you to impersonate any server on the planet a person tries to hook up with. 

All of these items have immeasurable worth past only a mere $84,000. Why on Earth would somebody with a working quantum pc publicly reveal that reality to say a single bitcoin after they might make the most of all these different issues they’d be able to doing?

Okay, let’s sweep all of these prospects apart and fake the complete world magically migrates to post-quantum cryptography apart from Bitcoin. It nonetheless is senseless to attempt to publicly declare this prize when you’ve got a practical quantum pc. 

Let’s assume you’ve a barely performant sufficient quantum pc, that it takes a good period of time to crack a single key. What number of naked public keys are there securing 50 BTC outputs from the primary mining epoch? THOUSANDS of them. Why on Earth would you crack one, after which go inform everybody publicly to say a single bitcoin? You’ll simply attempt to crack as lots of these early coinbase rewards as attainable earlier than folks detected you. 

Lastly, the timetable by itself is simply absurd. Quantum computer systems presently are usually not even able to factoring prime numbers that folks can do themselves of their heads mentally. In a single yr the expertise goes to leap from that to cracking Bitcoin keys? That’s absurd. 

So what the hell is the purpose of this prize besides some publicity stunt? It’s completely meaningless as a severe bounty to operate as a canary within the coalmine for us, irrespective of how involved or unconcerned you might be with the timeframes of quantum computer systems as a menace. 

This bounty is a joke.

This text is a Take. Opinions expressed are solely the writer’s and don’t essentially replicate these of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Journal.