Experts warn of a threat from quantum computing that could compromise up to 25% of Bitcoin's supply due to exposed public keys.
Three-Phase Solution
According to a proposal published on July 15, approximately 4 million BTC, including 1 million believed to belong to Satoshi Nakamoto, are vulnerable to potential quantum computer attacks.
"Bitcoin’s current signatures (ECDSA/Schnorr) will be a tantalizing target: any UTXO that has ever exposed its public key on-chain (roughly 25% of all bitcoin) could be stolen by a cryptographically relevant quantum computer," the post said.
The Quantum Threat
The authors of the proposal emphasized the enormity of the threat posed to the Bitcoin ecosystem by a potential quantum attack.
"Never before has Bitcoin faced an existential threat to its cryptographic primitives," they wrote. "A successful quantum attack on Bitcoin would result in significant economic disruption and damage across the entire ecosystem."
Security Initiatives
At the Quantum Bitcoin Summit in San Francisco, Lopp presented the initiative for the upgrade. The plan includes three phases, the first of which restricts users from sending BTC to vulnerable addresses, requiring the use of a new post-quantum address type called P2QRH. The second phase involves freezing funds that have not been moved to a secure address. The final phase is still being studied and may allow people to recover frozen assets using a BIP-39 seed phrase.
The plan is designed to enhance Bitcoin's security and protect against quantum computing-related threats. The success of this initiative could prevent significant economic losses and maintain the integrity of the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
