The Problem With Quantum

Uploaded on 2025-07-21 in TECHNOLOGY-Key Areas-Quantum Computing, FREE TO VIEW

Quantum computing is no longer a distant frontier, it’s a fast-approaching commercial viability, with major breakthroughs expected within the next five to ten years. Quantum computing is a new approach to calculation that uses the principles of fundamental physics to solve extremely complex problems very quickly.

Quantum computers will do extraordinary things. They will create extremely complex digital twins at the molecular level and develop optimisation solutions at the global level, creating change for many industries, from pharmaceuticals to logistics.

But before we can see any of those benefits, we need a viable quantum computer that can solve hyper-complex problems. The quantum computers we have today can solve problems, but nothing an ordinary computer can’t handle.

But to take the next big leap in quantum computing, we need a stable qubit. A qubit, or quantum bit, is the most fundamental building block of a quantum computer. It functions much like a transistor on a standard computer chip, but it can calculate in ways no traditional microprocessor ever could. Building a useful quantum computer would require entangling thousands of these qubits.

Some of the most powerful institutions in the world, including Google, Microsoft, Amazon, IBM and the US Government , are spending many millions of dollars in a race to develop and build the first practical quantum computer.

For businesses, particularly those in data-sensitive sectors like finance, healthcare, and telecommunications, the technology poses both a transformative opportunity and a looming cyber security threat. Whereas it was previously estimated that it would take a quantum computer with 20 million quantum bits eight hours to crack the popular RSA algorithm, the new estimate reckons this could be done with 1 million qubits far quicker.

Now, cyber security analysis are predicting a quantum apocalypse, an event when quantum computers become a reality and render most methods of Internet encryption useless.

The EU wants to speed up quantum computing, as Europe has fallen behind the US and China in rolling out the technology.

The US government fear is that a quantum computer would allow an adversary like China to quickly decode US military messages or consumer banking transactions.

Quantum computing is seen as the next frontier in technology. Its capabilities surpass those of existing supercomputers, enabling it to solve problems in areas ranging from drug discovery to battery technology, as well as communications and navigation technology for defence and space.

A Big Problem For Cyber Security

Modern-day digital communications, Internet traffic and data collections are secured using a system called public key cryptography, which relies on complex mathematics that regular computers can’t solve. But quantum computers, which are many times more powerful than today’s computers, could crack those codes easily, experts have warned.

Once quantum computers reach the inflection point, it would effectively mean that most of today’s data flying around on Internet wires would be readable to anyone tapping in.

The challenge for European countries will be to defend themselves against these emerging threats, or else fall prey to foreign spooks, cyber crooks and hackers. Europe is the global leader in the number of scientific publications on the technology, but private investment has mostly gone elsewhere.

Europe attracts only 5 percent of global private quantum funding, compared to over 50 percent by the US and 40 percent by China, according to the EU's calculations.

Cyber security authorities have suggested that EU countries protect critical infrastructure with post-quantum cyber security by the end of 2030. The dates proposed by European cyber officials roughly aligned with those put forward by the US, the UK and Australia

However, as data scientists make advances in the world of quantum computing, they're also working to create quantum-resistant algorithms to protect our digital footprints.

In the UK, all top secret government data has already been classified as post-quantum. This means that it uses new forms of encryption that scientists believe will stand up to quantum computers. Indeed, the UK has invested millions into the industry over the last few years and that amount is only going to rise.

Recent research from ISACA’s global Quantum Computing Pulse Poll highlights a growing concern, the rapid rise of quantum computing poses a serious risk to cyber security and business stability, yet most enterprises remain unprepared.

While 62 percent of technology and cyber security professionals fear that quantum computing could break current Internet encryption standards, only five percent consider it a high priority in the near term.

The Week | Industrial Cyber

Image: Planet Volumes

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