Microsoft’s Quantum Chip Breakthrough Accelerates Threat to Encryption
Quantum computers capable of breaking current encryption protocols will be available in “years, not decades,” following the development of the world’s first quantum chip.
Microsoft made the assessment as it unveiled the hardware chip, named Majorana 1, on February 19.
This breakthrough offers a path to developing quantum computers that can scale to a million qubits. Such systems will be “capable of tackling of tackling the most complex industrial and societal problems,” Microsoft said.
However, the announcement has also underscored the urgency of organizations transitioning to post-quantum cryptography. This is because quantum computers of this scale will be able to rapidly solve mathematical equations that make up current encryption protocols, such as RSA and AES.
Such a scenario will leave data, connections and components used by all organizations exposed.
Malicious actors are also believed to be already stockpiling encrypted data in anticipation of quantum technology to mature, in what are known as ‘harvest now, decrypt later’ attacks.
Iain Beveridge, Senior Product and Solutions Manager at Entrust, commented: “Microsoft’s announcement represents a ringing endorsement from an industry giant for what many organizations have already been saying: quantum computing is coming, and sooner than people think.”
“This will have widespread implications from a data security perspective, potentially leaving large gaps in an organization’s cryptographic landscape.”
New Quantum Chip Breakthrough
The Majorana 1 chip is powered by a new Topological Core architecture, which leverages the first ever topoconductor. This is a material that creates a new state of matter which can harnessed to produce a more stable qubit that is fast, small and can be digitally controlled.
The ability to control qubits digitally “vastly simplifies” how quantum computing works, according to Microsoft.
A ‘bit’ is the basic building block of classical computers, which can have a value of either 0 or 1. The quantum equivalent is called a qubit, which can be 0 or 1.
However, a ‘qubit’ can also be in superposition – any combination of 0 and 1. This allows qubit systems to process information in a fraction of the time it would take even the fastest classical systems to solve certain problems.
Microsoft stated that all of the world’s current computers operating together cannot do what a one million qubit quantum computer will be able to.
Reaching the next stage of quantum computing will require a quantum architecture that can provide a million qubits or more and reach trillions of fast and reliable operations.
Transitioning to Quantum-Secure Cryptography
In August 2024, the US National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) formalized the world’s first post-quantum cryptography standards.
This encompasses three post-quantum cryptographic algorithms that provide quantum-resistant solutions for different types of systems and use cases. These include digital signatures to authenticate identities and key-encapsulation mechanisms to establish a shared secret key over a public channel.
The standards provide organizations with a framework to secure systems and data against future quantum threats.
NIST has urged organizations to begin preparing to transition their systems to quantum-secure solutions using these algorithms.
This needs to take place before quantum computers are powerful enough to break existing encryption.
A report by Entrust Cybersecurity Institute in October 2024 highlighted significant barriers to achieving quantum cryptographic transitions. These included a lack of clear ownership in organizations over the transition and a lack of visibility over cryptographic assets.
The financial sector has also been at the forefront in developing quantum-secure solutions for sensitive data storage and communication. This includes UK-based bank HSBC successfully trialling the first application of quantum-secure technology for buying and selling tokenized physical gold in September 2024.
