DigiCert hosted the first World Quantum Readiness Day on September 26, 2024. The event focused on the challenges quantum computing brings to digital security and cryptography. It also discussed the steps needed to reduce the risks.
Amit Sinha, CEO of DigiCert, said the day’s purpose was to bring attention to a hot and sometimes controversial topic in digital security. He stressed that advances in quantum computing are “a truly existential threat” to the cryptographic methods that currently support digital trust across industries. Sinha called for an industry-wide effort to move towards new quantum-safe cryptographic standards.
He emphasized that immediate action is essential, no matter how immediate the threat seems. The event brought together well-known names in quantum computing, cryptography, and digital trust. A highlight was a conversation with Professor Peter Shor, a pioneer in quantum computing.
Shor invented the algorithm that bears his name, which can break current cryptographic standards on a large and stable quantum computer. This year is the 30th anniversary of Shor’s algorithm, which has become a cornerstone of quantum cryptography research. Shor explained the key difference between traditional and quantum computers.
Traditional computers work by moving from one state to another following set rules. Quantum computers operate on the principles of quantum mechanics, allowing them to exist in multiple states at the same time. “The reason this is useful is that you can make these superpositions of states interfere with each other,” Shor said.
He explained how this interference allows quantum computers to perform computations that are impossible for classical computers. Shor also discussed how quantum computers, with their exponentially larger number of possible states, can handle certain problems much more efficiently. This includes breaking the widely used RSA encryption.
“If someone was able to build a large-scale quantum computer, they could break this cryptosystem,” Shor noted.
Quantum threat to digital security
He emphasized the revolutionary potential of quantum computing in cryptography.
However, Shor acknowledged the slow progress in developing cryptographically relevant quantum computers. He cited the complex challenge of advancements needed in building quantum gates and qubits. “In 1994…we could do one-tenth of a quantum gate.
Now, to do that back to relevant numbers, you need to do millions of quantum gates and thousands of qubits,” he illustrated. Addressing the implications of quantum computers on digital trust, Shor warned of catastrophic consequences if a sufficiently powerful quantum computer were developed today. “Even if a quantum computer was available today, your purchases over the internet would be fine…
but there are some very important secrets protected by RSA,” he added. When asked to predict when quantum computers might realistically become capable of cracking RSA encryption, Shor responded cautiously. He said it would depend on future breakthroughs.
“This is something nobody can predict,” he said, highlighting the unpredictable nature of quantum research and development. The event also explored broader implications of quantum computing beyond cryptography. Shor suggested that quantum computers could profoundly impact solving complex physics problems, such as understanding high-temperature superconductors.
“If we do that, it’s also possible that we could develop better high-temperature superconductors,” he noted. This suggests wide-reaching consequences of such breakthroughs. As the first Quantum Readiness Day concluded, the message from Sinha, Shor, and other speakers was clear.
The quantum computing revolution is coming, and the time to prepare is now. Whether it’s securing digital trust or solving some of the most complex problems in science, the impact of quantum computing will be felt across industries. As Sinha summed up, “We are all in this together…
and organizations who have been told ‘don’t worry about it’ need to wake up and make a plan.”
