The majority of cybersecurity professionals believe quantum computing will develop faster than other security technologies, but for them thats cause for concern.

According to a new report by the Neustar International Security Council (NISC), almost three quarters (74 per cent) are keeping a close eye on the tech, while 21 per cent are doing experiments of their own. To tackle the potential coming crisis, a third (35 per cent) are already developing a quantum strategy, while just 16 per cent arent yet thinking about it.

The vast majority believe quantum computing could become a problem for encryption within five years. Just seven per cent believe quantum supremacy will never happen.

At the same time, almost all CISOs, CSO, CTOs and other security directors are feeling excitement over the potential positive changes quantum computing may bring.

At the moment, we rely on encryption, which is possible to crack in theory, but impossible to crack in practice, precisely because it would take so long to do so, over timescales of trillions or even quadrillions of years, said Rodney Joffe, Chairman of NISC and Security CTO at Neustar.

Without the protective shield of encryption, a quantum computer in the hands of a malicious actor could launch a cyberattack unlike anything weve ever seen.

According to Joffe, the cybersecurity community is already hard at work, researching quantum-proof cryptography.

IT experts of every stripe will need to work to rebuild the algorithms, strategies, and systems that form our approach to cybersecurity, Joffe concluded.

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Quantum computing could be the next big security breakthrough - ITProPortal