Coinbase Prepares for Quantum Threat, Boosts Bitcoin Security
Coinbase is taking proactive steps to prepare for a potential future threat from quantum computers. The exchange says it will deliver an automated quantum-safe signing pipeline within a year, allowing for post-quantum migration as soon as blockchains begin adopting new schemes. Currently, Coinbase's key management system protects approximately 99.9% of the assets it custodies.
The company is forming an Independent Advisory Board on Quantum Computing and Blockchain to help develop a post-quantum signing pipeline using secure enclaves and threshold cryptography. It's also joining the Bitcoin Security Consortium with BlackRock, Fidelity Digital Assets, Block, and others to support proposals like BIP-360.
While some in the crypto community have sounded the alarm about hypothetical advancements in quantum computers that could break Bitcoin's cryptography, Coinbase notes that a large-scale quantum computer capable of breaking current cryptography will eventually be built. The exchange says it wants to start preparing now, rather than waiting until it's urgent.