Quantum Computing’s Possibilities and Perils

Quantum computers could crack the cryptography that underpins financial stability

 
Soldiers in ancient Greece would send secret dispatches by wrapping a strip of parchment around a staff and writing across it. Their messages could be deciphered only by someone with a staff of the same thickness. It is one of the earliest examples of cryptography. Today’s secrets, such as Internet communication, digital banking, and electronic commerce, are protected from prying eyes by powerful computer algorithms. Yet these hitherto impenetrable cryptographic codes could soon be history.

Quantum computers can reach a level of optimization that would crack many of today’s encryption keys in less time than it takes to generate them using conventional digital computers. Financial institutions should future-proof their cybersecurity systems without delay. Failure to do so will imperil financial stability.

 
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Πηγή: imf.org