In late March, Google published a description paper of a quantum computer that theoretically could access the private key of Bitcoin in 9 minutes. This impact developed on Ethereum, other cryptocurrencies, and across technological facilities.
According to McKinsey & Company, a quantum computer fundamentally takes a different approach, with the potential to advance computer systems to an entirely new, higher level. A quantum computer can potentially solve a complex statistical problem beyond the limits of current computer technologies. This technology could be applied across industries, including the financial industry and the financial technology industry.
A quantum computer is often considered as the ‘faster version’ of a regular computer. Whereas the quantum computer is not a kind of chip with the advanced power capacity that regular computer utilized.
According to CoinDesk, a quantum computer could only operate in an extremely cold environment, a room with layered shields from electromagnetic disruption, vibration, or thermal radiation. This setup emphasized that a quantum computer is not the fastest version of a classic computer, but rather a fundamentally different technology that uses a series of physical laws that only function at small scales with ultra-low temperatures. The cold environment acts as a protective barrier that prevents thermal energy from disrupting the processed sensitive data. This phenomenon also known as decoherence, that could disturb the quantum computer’s calculation.
In its system, quantum computers use qubits that work in exponential, not linear. Three qubits could process eight potentials; fifty qubits could process a quadrillion potentials in a time. These capabilities are beyond comparison with the present’s most advanced computer system. Meanwhile, the qubits are entangled with each other, which means one qubit could know what the others have done. This system allows the quantum computers to operate in full coordination with the other quantum computers, rather than individually.
Although the quantum computer is considered as a technology advancement that could surpass the present’s most advanced technology, in fact, it has potential threats to the security of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. A conventional computer required thousand years to guess a private key to access a Bitcoin since every potential, which has unaccountable numbers, has to be checked one by one. While utilizing the quantum computer, the potentials could be processed in a time and automatically filtered by the physical law. Hence, the private key could be found in only hours or even minutes. This is the reason why a quantum computer could threaten Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in the future.
