Experts believe that Bitcoin veterans would make a fortune in case a quantum computer tapped into the 1.1 million BTC of Satoshi Nakamoto.
The possible consequences of a quantum breach and its effect on the market were discussed on social media over the weekend.
The advancements in quantum computers have triggered the resurgence of discussion over the largest early Bitcoin possessors. The wallet and other legacy addresses of Satoshi might be in danger because of the older Bitcoin protocols, which reveal the public keys on the blockchain.
Traditional wallets are not secure
Most of the Bitcoin addresses at the beginning were in pay-to-public-key format, exposing the entire public key at the time of transactions. Such exposure, according to experts, may enable a quantum computer to steal private keys in the future, should it be advanced enough. This weakness affects about 4 million BTC, including the ones that are owned by Satoshi. Analysts highlight that, although the technology to carry out such attacks is not yet available, the risk of it happening exists for legacy wallets.
On the other hand, more recent versions of wallets offer more claimed protection against quantum threats. These wallets keep private keys undisclosed on-chain, which means that an attacker will not be able to get any information on deriving private keys, which helps reduce the threat posed by quantum computing development in the near future.
Direct theft is not as important as market implications
Although a quantum attack can theoretically open the coins of Satoshi, older investors are likely to react quickly to any turbulence in the market. Willy Woo, a long-time Bitcoin analyst, observed that unexpected BTC liquidations would not pose a risk to network stability, but would be an effective trigger to opportunistic buying.
According to observers in the market, price volatility is what is of greater concern. Quantum computing can result in a lot of speculation that can create a quick change in prices even before the actual breach. A market analyst, James Check, pointed out that there is a high probability that Bitcoin users will switch to quantum-resistant wallets before a viable quantum threat could become real.
Experts see decades to adapt
Well-known cryptographer Adam Back said that quantum computing is not an immediate threat to Bitcoin. He estimates that it would take 20 to 40 years before quantum devices could break existing cryptography. Back stated that the post-quantum security standards were in place and could be applied in order to protect any BTC holdings, including legacy wallets.
Analysts agree that Bitcoin will have enough time to implement quantum-resistant technology. The community and the network organization mitigate the threat of disastrous loss. Speculative panic is the more probable effect of a quantum breakthrough in the near future than coin theft.
Bitcoin enthusiasts, industry observers, and analysts acknowledge that quantum computing poses hypothetical threats, but the blockchain ecosystem has several decades to become more secure. The fluctuations in the market could arise when it ever occurs that Satoshi coins are targeted, but the Bitcoin network itself is hard to be affected by the immediate threats.
