"Quantum computers, if scaled dramatically beyond what exists today, could run Shor's algorithm - a quantum technique designed to crack the hard mathematical problems that protect modern encryption - to break the elliptic-curve signatures that secure Bitcoin wallets. This is a genuine risk, but a very specific and narrowly defined one. Here's the truth: Quantum computing won't kill Bitcoin. But it will force it to evolve and that evolution has already begun."
"The biggest misconception in this debate is that Bitcoin is frozen in time. It isn't. Bitcoin has adopted major upgrades before. And it will evolve again. Quantum computers cannot magically rewrite the entire Bitcoin ledger. They cannot counterfeit coins out of thin air. And they cannot bypass consensus or control the network. What they could theoretically do is target addresses whose public keys have already been revealed, such as during a transaction. That means the threat is surgical, not systemic."
Quantum computers, if sufficiently scaled, could run Shor's algorithm to break elliptic-curve signatures that protect Bitcoin wallets, creating a genuine but narrowly defined risk. Quantum devices cannot rewrite the ledger, create coins, bypass consensus, or control the network. The principal vulnerability is addresses whose public keys are revealed during transactions, making attacks surgical rather than systemic. Bitcoin has previously implemented major upgrades and can transition to existing quantum-resistant signature schemes when necessary. The network's adaptability and available post-quantum cryptography reduce existential risk, transforming the quantum threat into a solvable engineering and governance challenge.
Read at ComputerWeekly.com
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