Quantum breakthroughs could increase cybersecurity risks, experts warn

Critical infrastructure could become a target if quantum computing falls into the wrong hands

An employee of startup PsiQuantum holds a silicon disc containing the company's quantum computing chips at a facility in San Jose, California. Photo: PsiQuantum / Reuters

Recent developments in quantum computing could have major benefits for scientific and medical research, but experts say they also present a new set of challenges for those responsible for ensuring cybersecurity and data encryption.

Marc Manzano, general manager of cybersecurity at SandboxAQ, a company that works at the intersection of quantum technology and artificial intelligence, said the world is getting closer "to this big moment where we might have a quantum computer that will be able to decrypt any digital communications that we're having nowadays".

For several years, the promises of quantum computing existed mainly in marketing materials provided by companies advertising continuing research and development. Now, scientific breakthroughs backed by published research are coming to fruition, and Mr Manzando said the long-promised benefits of quantum computers might soon become reality.

Marc Manzano, general manager of cybersecurity at SandboxAQ. Photo: SandboxAQ

In the last 12 months alone, quantum computing-related announcements from many technology players have been plentiful. The Alphabet-owned Google unveiled Willow, a state of the art quantum chip that it said will pave the way for breakthroughs in large-scale quantum computing, in early 2024. In February, Microsoft revealed its Majorana 1 quantum chip, which is based on an entirely new state of matter. Most recently, Amazon announced its "cat qubit" powered chip.

Conventional computers process data in bits and have a binary value of zero or one, whereas quantum computers can process digits simultaneously using a two-state unit called a qubit. What that means is that data crunching for research can now be done in a fraction of the time, potentially yielding new breakthroughs in science and medical research.

Experts warn that public infrastructure systems could be vulnerable if quantum computers are accessed by nefarious actors. Getty Images

It also means, however, that if quantum technology were to fall into the hands of bad actors, it could create cataclysmic security concerns. In terms of technology and data cryptography, Mr Manzano says that government institutions, as well as financial service companies, for whom cybersecurity is paramount, are vulnerable to the misuse of quantum computing – and they're not the only ones.

"Telecommunications, oil and gas, logistics, transport, energy, power grids, anything that falls under the category of critical infrastructure could face challenges," he told The National, advising industries to begin investing in increased encryption and cybersecurity research. "We [SandboxAQ] are working with a lot of entities that are taking this seriously and have really large budgets to do so. But what happens with 99 per cent of other entities worldwide?"

Most recently, Mr Manzano pointed out that the central bank of Israel issued a directive for banks to prepare for scenarios in which quantum computers "will be more readily available" and therefore present a significantly higher security threat.

Marc Manzano said the future of data security and encryption will revolve around quantum-resistant cryptographic algorithms. Getty Images

"This directive is prompting banks to deploy the necessary tools that are going to allow them to actually know what kind of cryptography is being used, monitor data migration in an automated manner, with the possibility to kind of manage that risk in a very efficient way," he explained. Mr Manzano said that other countries should introduce something similar to blunt possible cybersecurity and encryption vulnerabilities.

The new frontier for cybersecurity, he added, will revolve around products that allow companies and governments to have quantum-resistant cryptographic algorithms. He also said technology companies like SandboxAQ have been researching the potential threat from quantum for many years and already have tools to help various institutions.

"We're helping companies modernise the way they manage cryptography," he said, noting that there are still many entities that are not necessarily prepared for the threat posed by quantum technologies. "You don't want to be seen as a decision-maker for a company that's not caring about this."