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I used to think quantum computing was all science fiction—stuff we might see in 2050, maybe. That changed for me the moment I stumbled across an article about IBM’s 156‑qubit chip. Apparently, it’s 50 times faster than the previous version, and it’s already running in multiple global data centres. I mean, that’s real. That’s now. And if quantum computers are really getting that powerful, what does it mean for the encryption we all depend on?

That question led me into the world of post‑quantum cryptography, or PQC. It’s basically a whole new way of securing data that’s built to resist quantum attacks. Because here’s the deal—today’s encryption methods like RSA or ECC might crumble once quantum algorithms like Shor’s become practical. And quantum computing is no longer a hypothetical threat. Just ask Google—its new Willow processor, with 105 qubits, has already done things classical computers would take billions of years to calculate. So, yeah. This stuff matters.

Turns out, we’re not just theorising anymore. As of August 2024, NIST officially published new post‑quantum encryption standards. That means we now have concrete guidelines to follow. There’s ML-KEM (based on Kyber) for encrypting messages, ML-DSA (from Dilithium) for signing them, and SLH-DSA (SPHINCS+) as a backup. Then, in March 2025, they added HQC—a totally different type of encryption based on error-correcting codes—as a safety net. That kind of diversification feels like a smart move, honestly. If one approach fails, we’ve got others.

And while governments are usually slow to move on things like this, the adoption here has actually been impressive. Cloudflare, for example, started using PQC in some of its TLS 1.3 connections back in 2024. Now, in 2025, over a third of their traffic already uses hybrid encryption (meaning classical + quantum-resistant). That’s huge. Even browsers like Chrome and Firefox are starting to support PQC if you toggle a flag.

It’s also wild how far the support has spread in the developer world. OpenJDK, Go, Open Quantum Safe, WolfSSL, even Microsoft’s SymCrypt—all of them now include PQC libraries. Cloud services like AWS and Meta are on board, too. Meta even upgraded its Fizz library, which powers Messenger encryption. It's becoming very clear: this isn’t a niche concern anymore.

What really hit me personally was the concept of “harvest now, decrypt later.” Think about it. Hackers could be stealing encrypted files today, storing them, and just waiting for the day a quantum computer can crack them open. That means your medical records, financial documents, private emails—all of it could be compromised in the future. And that future is getting closer.

But of course, switching to PQC isn’t easy. These new algorithms have much larger key sizes—sometimes 5x or more than RSA—which can slow things down or break compatibility with older systems. And not every business is even aware of the risk. Some are still figuring out what “post‑quantum” even means. Updating all your infrastructure is expensive and complex.

Still, I think it’s worth the effort. If you’re building apps, running systems, or managing any kind of sensitive data, this is something you can’t ignore. NIST is already pushing to phase out classical cryptography by 2035. That might sound far away, but migrating encryption systems take years. Starting now gives you a head start.

What’s encouraging is that the research community isn’t slowing down. There’s a lot of work going into making PQC faster and more efficient. They’re also working on making our systems copyright-agile—meaning they can easily switch to new algorithms as threats evolve. I really think in the next decade, having quantum-resistant security will be just as normal as using HTTPS is today.

To be honest, I’m still wrapping my head around all of this. But the takeaway is clear: the quantum future is coming, whether we’re ready or not. And PQC isn’t just something for cryptographers to worry about—it’s something we all need to be thinking about, especially if we’re building the digital tools the world relies on.