Vulnerability of blockchain technologies to quantum attacks

• Main Authors: Joseph J. Kearney, Carlos A. Perez-Delgado
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2021-07-01
• Series: Array
• Subjects: Cybersecurity; blockchain; Bitcoin; Ethereum; Quantum computing; Post-quantum cryptography
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590005621000138

Quantum computation represents a threat to many cryptographic protocols in operation today. It has been estimated that by 2035, there will exist a quantum computer capable of breaking the vital cryptographic scheme RSA2048. Blockchain technologies rely on cryptographic protocols for many of their essential sub-routines. Some of these protocols, but not all, are open to quantum attacks. Here we analyze the major blockchain-based cryptocurrencies deployed today—including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin and ZCash, and determine their risk exposure to quantum attacks. We finish with a comparative analysis of the studied cryptocurrencies and their underlying blockchain technologies and their relative levels of vulnerability to quantum attacks.