Store Now, Decrypt Later: The Quantum Threat

Discover why your sensitive data is already at risk

Imagine someone stealing your safe today, knowing they can't crack it now but confident they'll have the tools to open it in ten years.

That's exactly what's happening with encrypted data on the web today.

Cybercriminals and nation-states are harvesting encrypted information en masse, building vast digital warehouses of locked data, waiting for quantum computers to hand them the master key.

The Quantum Threat is Happening Now

Adversaries intercept encrypted communications, steal encrypted databases, and collect cipher text they can find.

They don't need to break the encryption today because they're betting on quantum computers doing the heavy lifting tomorrow.

This "harvest now, decrypt later" strategy is already underway.

More than 70% of ransomware attacks now steal data before encrypting it, stockpiling it for future quantum decryption.

Current encryption relies on mathematical problems that would take classical computers thousands of years to solve. RSA, elliptic curve cryptography, and Diffie-Hellman key exchange all depend on the difficulty of factoring large numbers or solving discrete logarithm problems.

Quantum computers running Shor's algorithm are expected to solve these problems in hours or days instead of millennia.

The Timeline

IBM plans to build a meaningful quantum computer by 2029.

Google executives say the technology may only be five years away.

Experts predict "Q-Day"—when quantum computers can break current encryption—could arrive as early as 2035.

NIST has set firm deadlines: RSA-2048 and ECC-256 algorithms will be deprecated by 2030 and completely banned by 2035.

The White House has mandated federal systems complete their transition by 2035.

As a result, the quantum threat isn't limited to government agencies or Fortune 500 companies—it affects every organisation that handles sensitive data.

From small businesses storing customer payment information to healthcare providers managing patient records, any encrypted data stolen today could be vulnerable tomorrow. The long-term value of this information makes it attractive to attackers who are willing to wait years for quantum computers to unlock it.

The Migration Challenge

Moving to post-quantum cryptography isn't simple. NIST has standardized new algorithms like CRYSTALS-Kyber and CRYSTALS-Dilithium, but implementation requires careful planning.

Key challenges include larger key sizes (some post-quantum keys are 10-100 times larger than current ones), increased computational requirements, and ensuring compatibility during transition periods.

The migration timeline is compressed. Organizations need to start now to complete transitions before quantum computers arrive, while also protecting against current quantum data harvesting.

What Makes This Threat Different

You won't know when your data has been stolen. Threat actors can capture encrypted data now and decrypt it years later once quantum computers allow them to do so. By then, the damage is irreversible.

Unlike traditional cyberattacks that show immediate effects, harvest-now-decrypt-later attacks are silent. Organizations might believe their data is safe simply because no damage has been observed, when in reality, it could already be sitting in an adversary's archive.

Why DuoKey KMS with MPC Matters

DuoKey addresses both immediate and future quantum threats through advanced Key Management and Multi-Party Computation (MPC). Through DuoKey's unified dashboard, organisations can control their entire encryption key and certificate management processes from creation to expiry. This provides comprehensive oversight of all cryptographic assets across infrastructure with real-time monitoring and detailed reporting.

DuoKey's Post-Quantum ready KMS streamlines the deployment of quantum-resistant algorithms without disrupting existing operations or compromising security posture. Organisations can assess their post-quantum cryptography readiness, manage policies effectively and oversee all cryptographic operations through the centralised interface and with MPC key generation.

Learn more about DuoKey PQC. Book a demo

Take action now

The quantum threat isn't a future problem—it's a present risk requiring immediate action. Organisations that start building quantum-resistant infrastructure today will be prepared when quantum computers arrive, while those that wait may find their most sensitive data exposed retroactively.

The window for preparation is narrowing, making the choice of the right key management solution more critical than ever.