Bitcoin Wallets Get Quantum-Proof Shield With New Zero-Knowledge System

AmericanFortress researchers have proposed ZKPoSP, a post-quantum signature scheme for hierarchical deterministic crypto wallets. This system replaces elliptic curve signatures with zero-knowledge proofs while preserving existing wallet addresses.

The research focuses on the point at which a fault-tolerant quantum computer could use Shor's algorithm to derive private keys from public keys, rendering the elliptic curve cryptography used by Bitcoin and many other blockchains insecure. This is known as 'Q-Day'.

Instead of requiring users to migrate funds to new quantum-safe addresses, ZKPoSP verifies ownership of a wallet's seed phrase using zero-knowledge proofs.