Quantum Computing's Impact on Cybersecurity

### Overview At RSAC Conference 2025, hosts Jameson Kush and Jen English from Informa TechTarget spoke with Rob Clyde, Chairman of CryptoQuantique and past board chair of ISACA, and Jamie Norton, ISACA board director and Australian government agency CISO. The panel discussed the current state of quantum computing, findings from recent ISACA research, the direct risks quantum technologies pose to traditional cryptography, and the urgent need for enterprise preparedness despite general-purpose quantum computing remaining several years away.

### Key Topics - **Current Reality of Quantum Computing**: Quantum computing currently excels at niche applications such as optimization, pattern matching, chemistry problems, and ultra-accurate quantum clocks. General-purpose quantum systems that can solve arbitrary problems are still 5 to 10 years away or longer, though sudden breakthroughs—especially in error correction—could accelerate this timeline rapidly. - **ISACA Research Findings**: A survey of more than 2,600 respondents revealed a stark gap between risk awareness and organizational action. While 62% were aware that quantum computing could break internet encryption, 56% were familiar with "harvest now, decrypt later" risks, and 34% recognized risks to IoT devices unable to upgrade to post-quantum cryptography, only about 5% of organizations were actually doing something to address these challenges. - **The Cryptographic Threat**: Public key encryption relies on mathematical algorithms that are intractable for classical computers but provably vulnerable to Shor's algorithm on a sufficiently large quantum computer. Even before such machines arrive, threat actors can execute "harvest now, decrypt later" attacks, collecting encrypted communications today to break them once capable quantum hardware is built. - **Sustainability and Architecture**: Unlike classical supercomputers and AI data centers that demand immense power, scaling quantum processing units (qubits) operates with fixed energy costs once the system is shielded and cooled to near absolute zero. Quantum systems will not replace classical computing alone; hybrid quantum-classical architectures will likely reduce net energy consumption while aiding AI workloads like optimization and pattern matching.

### Technical Details - **Algorithm Vulnerability**: Shor's algorithm is mathematically proven to break current public key encryption schemes instantly once implemented on a sufficiently large-scale quantum computer. - **Hardware Constraints**: Current quantum systems require large cooling units to reach near absolute zero temperatures and require heavy shielding against environmental noise. Overcoming error-correction challenges is the primary hurdle preventing faster scaling. - **Commercial Deployment**: Quantum computers currently cost between $10 million and $100 million and are predominantly accessible via cloud/SaaS high-performance computing (HPC) models rather than on-premises deployments.

### Takeaways - **Start the Preparedness Journey Now**: Organizations must not wait for quantum computers to fully mature. Leaders should audit environments to identify where cryptographic keys and sensitive data are stored. - **Address Legacy and IoT Limitations**: Assess whether connected devices and critical systems can be upgraded to post-quantum cryptography (PQC). - **Leverage Available Guidance**: Organizations can utilize educational resources and preparedness checklists, such as those published by ISACA, to build an actionable migration and defense strategy.