All Post-Quantum, PQC Posts
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Post-Quantum
Shor’s Algorithm: A Quantum Threat to Modern Cryptography
Shor’s Algorithm is more than just a theoretical curiosity – it’s a wake-up call for the security community. By understanding its principles and implications, we can appreciate why the cryptographic landscape must evolve. The goal of this guide is to equip you with that understanding, without delving into complex mathematics, so you can make informed decisions about protecting your organization’s data against the quantum threat.
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Post-Quantum
Grover’s Algorithm and Its Impact on Cybersecurity
Grover’s algorithm was one of the first demonstrations of quantum advantage on a general problem. It highlighted how quantum phenomena like superposition and interference can be harnessed to outperform classical brute force search. Grover’s is often described as looking for “a needle in a haystack” using quantum mechanics.
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Post-Quantum
Quantum-Safe vs. Quantum-Secure Cryptography
In 2010, I was serving as an interim CISO for an investment bank. During that time, I was already trying to figure out the risks posed by quantum computing. One day, I was approached by a vendor who, with great confidence, made two bold claims. First, they insisted that the Q-Day is just around the corner, claiming they had insider information from the NSA suggesting…
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Quantum Computing
Qubits: A Brief Introduction for Cybersecurity Professionals
A qubit is the quantum analog of a classical bit – it’s the basic unit of quantum information. However, unlike a classical bit that can only be 0 or 1 at any given time, a qubit can exist in a combination of both 0 and 1 states simultaneously. This property is called superposition.
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Quantum Computing
Bell States: An Introduction for Cybersecurity Professionals
Bell states are a set of four specific quantum states of two qubits (quantum bits) that are entangled. In simple terms, an entangled pair of qubits behaves as one system, no matter how far apart they are. Bell states are the simplest and most extreme examples of this phenomenon. They are fundamental to quantum mechanics because they exhibit correlations between particles that have no classical…
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Post-Quantum
Kuperberg’s Algorithm and its Impact on Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC)
Kuperberg’s algorithm is an impressive quantum algorithmic achievement that expands the boundary of what quantum computers might do beyond the original realm of Shor’s algorithm. It demonstrates that even some non-trivial group problems (like the dihedral hidden subgroup problem) are easier for quantum computers than for classical ones, albeit not easy in an absolute sense. In the context of cryptography, Kuperberg’s result serves as a…
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Quantum Computing
Balancing Quantum Computing Hype and Hope
Quantum computing stands at the intersection of immense promise and intense hype. As someone who had led cybersecurity teams (including serving as an interim CISO for Fortune 500 companies) and was now investing in a quantum computing startup, I found myself navigating two contrasting narratives. On one hand, I am bullish on the future of quantum technology - convinced that within 15-20 years we’d see…
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Quantum Computing
Quantum Computing Hype and Fear: Same Song, New Verse
Another year, another wave of "quantum computers are about to crack all our encryption" fear-mongering. It’s 2012, and I’m getting déjà vu reading headlines proclaiming the imminent doom of RSA and other cryptography. I've been writing about this for at least 10 years. Ever since Peter Shor unveiled an algorithm for factoring large numbers on a quantum computer back in 1994, the tech world has…
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