Quantum Computers and Harvest Now, Decrypt Later
Quantum computing is poised to revolutionize various industries, from pharmaceuticals to finance, by solving complex problems that are currently intractable for classical computers. However, this technological advancement also introduces significant cybersecurity challenges. One of the most pressing concerns is the potential for quantum computers to break widely used encryption algorithms, such as RSA and ECC, which rely on the difficulty of factoring large numbers—a task that quantum algorithms like Shor’s can perform exponentially faster than classical methods. This vulnerability has led to the emergence of the “Harvest Now, Decrypt Later” (HNDL) threat model.
In HNDL attacks, adversaries—often state-sponsored actors—intercept and store encrypted data today, with the intention of decrypting it in the future when quantum computing capabilities mature. This strategy targets sensitive information that remains valuable over time, including trade secrets, personal financial data, and mission-critical data for the battlefield. To mitigate this threat, proactive measures are essential to safeguard data against future quantum-enabled decryption capabilities.
Artificial Intelligence Threats Now
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and generative AI (GenAI) are transforming industries with unprecedented speed, offering advanced capabilities in automation, decision-making, and data synthesis. However, this rapid adoption introduces new and complex cybersecurity vulnerabilities. GenAI models, such as large language models (LLMs), can be exploited for malicious purposes—ranging from generating sophisticated phishing content and malware code to enabling deepfake-driven social engineering attacks. Moreover, the very architecture of these models can be vulnerable to prompt injection, model inversion, and data poisoning attacks, threatening the integrity and confidentiality of systems and data.