New quantum-computing advances heighten threat to elliptic curve cryptosystems

"Researchers demonstrated the use of neutral atoms as reconfigurable qubits that have free access to each other, allowing a quantum computer to break 256-bit elliptic curve cryptography in 10 days while using 100 times less overhead than previously estimated."

"Google researchers demonstrated how to break ECC-securing blockchains for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in less than 9 minutes while achieving a 20-fold resource reduction."

"The advances are largely being driven by new quantum architectures developed by physicists and computer scientists in a push to create quantum computers that operate correctly even in the presence of errors."

"The research community continues to make steady progress on both the physical qubits and the quantum algorithms necessary to realize an efficient and practical CRQC."

Recent research indicates that building utility-scale quantum computers capable of breaking elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) requires significantly fewer resources than anticipated. One study shows neutral atoms as reconfigurable qubits can break 256-bit ECC in 10 days with 100 times less overhead. Another study by Google demonstrates breaking ECC in under 9 minutes with a 20-fold resource reduction. These advancements are driven by new quantum architectures and improved algorithms, indicating meaningful progress in cryptographically relevant quantum computing (CRQC).

Read at Ars Technica