Quantum computers are many years away from cracking crypto says physicist & quantum information expert Sankar Das Sarma

(CoinTelegraph) Condensed matter theory physicist and quantum information expert Sankar Das Sarma argued in MIT Technology Review that quantum computers remain a very long way away from cracking RSA-based cryptography.
Quantum security is seen as a major issue in the blockchain and crypto sector and it is widely believed that powerful quantum computers will one day become advanced enough to hack current cryptography. That could result in the theft of billions of dollars worth of digital assets or bring blockchain tech to a grinding halt. There are numerous projects devoted to developing quantum-proof cryptography and blockchains.
The physicist highlighted that prime factorization in which a “quantum computer can solve the hard problem of finding the prime factors of large numbers exponentially faster than all classical schemes,” but cracking cryptography is currently well beyond the grasp of current computing power.
Sarma explained, “The most advanced quantum computers today have dozens of decohering (or “noisy”) physical qubits. Building a quantum computer that could crack RSA codes out of such components would require many millions if not billions of qubits.”

Despite the danger being some way off, numerous firms are already making efforts to shore up quantum security. Cointelegraph reported last month that United States banking giant JP Morgan unveiled research regarding a quantum key distribution blockchain network that is resistant to quantum computing attacks.
Xx labs also launched a blockchain it claims is a “quantum-resistant and privacy-focused blockchain ecosystem.”

Sandra K. Helsel, Ph.D. has been researching and reporting on frontier technologies since 1990.  She has her Ph.D. from the University of Arizona.