Jameson Lopp, the chief security officer at Bitcoin (BTC) custody provider Casa, recently opposed the idea of permitting quantum recovery for lost BTC. He argued that burning these coins to maintain the integrity of the protocol was a better alternative.
Lopp stated that allowing individuals or institutions with quantum computers to recover lost coins undermines the core attributes of the Bitcoin network, including censorship resistance, transaction immutability, and conservatism.
In an article dated March 16, the crypto executive emphasized that allowing quantum recovery benefits no one. He further commented:
“Permitting quantum recovery of bitcoin is essentially equivalent to wealth redistribution. It would result in bitcoin being transferred from those unaware of quantum capabilities to those who have excelled in the technological race to obtain quantum computers.”
“It’s challenging to envision any positive aspects of such a situation,” the executive elaborated, ultimately asserting that quantum recovery could jeopardize the security of the Bitcoin network.
The potential threat that quantum computers pose to Bitcoin remains a contentious topic. Some experts argue that the risks to contemporary encryption are still decades away, while others claim that practical quantum computers may never materialize, and some warn that the threat is already upon us.
Jameson Lopp talks about the dangers posed by quantum computers at the Future of Bitcoin Conference in 2024. Source: Future of Bitcoin Conference
Related: Crypto, quantum computing on collision course as Microsoft unveils new chip
The great quantum scare of 2024
In October 2024, researchers from Shanghai University claimed they had managed to break encryption standards utilized in military and banking sectors with a quantum computer.
However, YouTuber “Mental Outlaw” later argued that these claims were exaggerated and that the researchers did not succeed in breaking modern encryption standards.
The YouTuber pointed out that the quantum computer employed by the research team was only able to factor the integer 2,269,753, which set a new benchmark for quantum computers, yet was still outperformed by some classical computers.
Mental Outlaw noted that the device used in the study could only crack a 22-bit key, whereas the highest accomplishment achieved by classical computers was the decryption of an 892-bit key.
Present-day encryption key sizes typically range from 2048 to 4096 bits, with possibilities for extending key sizes in the future to enhance security further.
Magazine: Bitcoin vs. the quantum computer threat: Timeline and solutions (2025–2035)
