[ExI] Two very recent Quantum Computing bombshells

[John Clark]

*Two big developments occurred in the field of quantum computing yesterday,
and one of them may be of particular interest to members of this group
because it concerns 256 bit elliptical encryption, the sort that Bitcoin
uses. A year or even a week ago most people thought you'd need a quantum
computer with several million physical Qubits to break Bitcoin's encryption
in a reasonable length of time, but yesterday Google announced they have
found a far more efficient algorithm which if used on a quantum computer
with just 25,000 physical Qubits could break bitcoin in only 10 days.
Interestingly Google decided not to publish the algorithm, instead they
proved they have access to such an algorithm by publishing a cryptographic
zero-knowledge proof. They said they did this after consulting with the US
government. Google issue the following statement:*

*"The escalating risk that detailed cryptanalytic blueprints could be
weaponized by adversarial actors necessitates a shift in disclosure
practices. Accordingly, we believe it is now a matter of public
responsibility to share refined resource estimates while withholding the
precise mechanics of the underlying attacks. Progress in quantum computing
has reached the stage where it is prudent to stop publishing details of
improved quantum cryptanalysis to avoid misuse."*

*Quantum computing bombshells that are not April fools jokes*
<https://scottaaronson.blog/>

*John K Clark    See what's on my list at  Extropolis
<https://groups.google.com/g/extropolis>*
naf
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