Quantum computing (QC) brings with it a mix of groundbreaking possibilities and significant risks. Major tech players like IBM, Google, Microsoft and Amazon have already rolled out commercial QC cloud services, while specialized firms like Quantinuum and PsiQuantum have quickly achieved unicorn status. Experts predict that the global QC market could add more than $1 trillion to the world’s economy between 2025 and 2035. However, can we say with certainty that the benefits outweigh the risks? On the one hand, these cutting-edge systems hold the promise of revolutionizing areas such as drug discovery, climate modeling, AI and maybe even artificial general intelligence (AGI) development. On the other hand, they also introduce serious cybersecurity challenges that should be addressed right now, even though fully functional quantum computers capable of breaking today’s encryption standards are still several years away. The main cybersecurity fear tied to QC is its potential to break encryption algorithms that have been deemed unbreakable. A survey by KPMG revealed that around 78% of U.S. companies and 60% of Canadian companies anticipate that quantum computers will become mainstream by 2030. More alarmingly, 73% of U.S. respondents and 60% of Canadian respondents believe it’s just a matter of time before cybercriminals start using QC to undermine current security measures.

Full opinion : How cloud quantum computing could be the next big thing provided the big tech takes care of the cyber securities issues.