Visa, JPMorgan Are Already Preparing for Potential Quantum Cyberattacks
Key points…
+ Experts say quantum-computing cyberattacks could be more than a decade away, based on the technology’s rate of progress, but the consequences could be so severe that companies and cryptographers world-wide are preparing now. Visa Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co., for example, are researching methods capable of thwarting such an attack, developing new processes and closely following the race for new encryption standards.
JPMorgan executives have been aware of the threat for years, Yassir Nawanz said. “We’ve been actively discussing within the firm as to how we’d address this,” he said. “But the reality is that this is something that affects the entire ecosystem.”
+ Nearly six years ago, researchers at Visa began studying so-called post-quantum cryptography, which refers to the new cryptographic methods that could be used to withstand an attack from a quantum computer.
+ JPMorgan is developing processes to help identify high-priority data sets that need to be protected for several years and could be at risk if a powerful quantum computer becomes available, Mr. Nawaz said. “We need to have a process that lets us identify and inventory that data,” he said.
+ That data would then be first in line to be secured by new encryption standards that could withstand a quantum cyberattack, he said. New encryption standards are being developed now, in a cryptography competition led by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Content may have been edited for style and clarity. The “+” to the left of paragraphs or other statements indicates quoted material from “Source:” document. Boldface title is original title from “Source:” Italicized statements are directly quoted from “Source:” document. Image sources are indicated as applicable.
