kvantnõrkuste

Kvantnõrkuste, often translated as quantum weaknesses or quantum vulnerabilities, refers to the potential security risks posed by the advent of quantum computers. Classical computers use bits that are either 0 or 1. Quantum computers, however, utilize qubits which can exist in superposition, allowing them to be both 0 and 1 simultaneously, and can be entangled with each other. This vastly increases their processing power for certain types of problems.

The primary concern surrounding quantum computers is their ability to break current public-key cryptography. Many of the encryption algorithms used today, such as RSA and ECC, rely on the computational difficulty of factoring large numbers or solving discrete logarithm problems. Shor's algorithm, a quantum algorithm, can solve these problems exponentially faster than the best known classical algorithms. This means that encrypted data, if stored today and exposed to a sufficiently powerful quantum computer in the future, could be decrypted.

This threat is not immediate, as current quantum computers are not powerful or stable enough to run Shor's algorithm effectively for cryptographically relevant key sizes. However, the development is progressing rapidly, and the time it takes to transition to new cryptographic standards is significant. Therefore, researchers and organizations are actively developing and standardizing quantum-resistant cryptography, also known as post-quantum cryptography (PQC). These new algorithms are designed to be secure against both classical and quantum computers. The transition to PQC is a complex undertaking involving the update of software, hardware, and protocols across various industries and governments.