Quantum computing white paper reveals encryption risks

ME News Report, May 3rd (UTC+8), Google’s Quantum AI latest white paper shows that the physical number of qubits needed to break the core cryptographic system of cryptocurrencies has been reduced to about 500k, down approximately 20 times from previous estimates, indicating that quantum threats have become a medium-term quantifiable risk. Currently, attacks mainly target signature mechanisms based on elliptic curve cryptography, involving in-transit transaction attacks and static asset attacks. The report points out that about 500k Bitcoin (approximately 33% of the total supply) and numerous Ethereum accounts have exposed their public keys, posing potential risks. Although hardware development still lags, algorithm optimization continues to advance, and the Q-Day is expected to occur between 2028 and 2035, with the bottleneck in migration being governance rather than technology. (Source: MLion)