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40 sats \ 2 replies \ @GxqoRR 24 Oct 2023 freebie \ on: Is Quantum Computing really a threat? If that's the case, how? bitcoin
Quantum computers can potentially break asymmetric encryption, but only weaken the hashing functions such as SHA-256 slightly.
In terms of mining, I think the mining difficulty will likely be adjusted accordingly to keep the 10 minutes block time, as quantum computers develop.
Since quantum computers can only weaken SHA-256, but not significantly to break it, the integrity of the Blockchain can still be preserved, as one can still verify that blocks are not altered through the hash.
I think the real problem will be the individual addresses that are encrypted through asymmetric encryption, which will be broken. One possible solution could be to use a new quantum resistant encryption to secure bitcoin accounts (addresses) before powerful quantum computers come to be, and ask people to transfer funds from old accounts to the new ones. Possibly the existing blockchain (before this migration) can also be secured by being hard coded into the source code (if it's necessary).
All the bitcoins that are not migrated due to various reasons (such as owner not alive, not aware of the issue, etc. including Satoshi's early mined bitcoins) can either be considered not spendable, or can maybe only be released through verification of some info that only the owner knows and got hashed into the UTXO data (as I've heard).
I think the real problem will be the individual addresses that are encrypted through asymmetric encryption
There is no encryption, addresses are locking scripts which lock bitcoins with spending conditions.
For example, if you use a P2PKH address (Pay to Public Key Hash), you need to provide the public key which, when hashed, results in the same hash to spend the bitcoins. (You also need to provide a signature.)
No encryption involved.
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Sorry I meant the asymmetric cryptography scheme used to derive private and public keys, where the private key is used for signing, and public key used for generating addresses to receive bitcoins. I didn't mean the blockchain was encrypted. The scheme might be at risk without mitigation, if quantum computers become powerful enough.
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