The research shows quantum computers may break bitcoin and ether wallet encryption with far fewer qubits than previously thought, accelerating the push toward post-quantum security.

Imagine a world where the locks protecting your most sensitive information—your financial records, medical history, or even national security secrets—can be effortlessly picked. This is the looming threat posed by quantum computers, machines so ...

With around 26,000 qubits, the encryption could be broken in a day, the researchers report in a paper submitted March 30 to arXiv.org. Another prevalent form of encryption, RSA–2048, would require 100,000 qubits and 10 days to break, according to the researchers, from Caltech and quantum computing company Oratomic in Pasadena, Calif.