Solana Ecosystem Prepares Migration Path to Beat Quantum Threats

The Solana blockchain is ready to meet the threat of quantum computing, the Solana Foundation said in a Monday (April 27) blog post.

While that threat is years away, Solana has a well-researched plan ready for when it is needed, the group said in the post.

Two of Solana’s validator client developers, Anza and Firedancer, have been studying post-quantum migration paths and, working independently, arrived at the conclusion that a post-quantum scheme called Falcon provides a solution. Both have built an initial implementation that is now available, according to the post.

Falcon provides a post-quantum digital signature scheme with compact signatures that is designed for high-throughput blockchain use.

“While no change is required today or likely anytime soon, there is a clear, well-researched plan that can be activated if and when the time comes,” Solana said in the post. “The migration work is manageable, the transition can happen quickly when the time is right, and network performance is not expected to see a meaningful impact.”

In addition, Blueshift’s Solana Winternitz Vault, which has been in place for two years, provides a direct path for quantum resilience, per the post.

Looking ahead, Solana plans to continue its quantum research and its evaluation of Falcon and alternatives, adopt a post-quantum scheme for new wallets if quantum becomes a credible threat, and migrate existing wallets to the chosen scheme.

“As the quantum conversation continues to evolve, the Solana ecosystem is prepared, with the research, infrastructure and ecosystem alignment to back it up,” the group said in the post.

PYMNTS reported in January that Q Day, the moment quantum computers can practically break elliptic curve cryptography, promises to render redundant the computational codes that secure modern finance, with crypto likely to be harder hit than most.

While quantum-safe security exists and is already being used by companies such as Apple and Zoom, deploying the equivalent capabilities across public blockchains that are by nature decentralized represents a thornier governance challenge, the report said.

On March 25, Google released a report suggesting that if firms don’t migrate their data over to post-quantum cryptography in the next three years, by 2029, they will be exposed to an existential threat.