Gopeka Nair writes:
Recent developments in practical quantum computers could pose a threat to encryption techniques that secure online data, including banking and medical information. Ohio Wesleyan University alumnus Taimur Islam ’13 is working to keep such data safe.
[…]
Currently, digital information that’s transmitted is encrypted so it is unintelligible to hackers. The data can’t be intercepted unless a hacker has the same encryption key that was used to transmit the information, Islam, an OWU physics major, explained to his audience. But quantum computing will be faster than classical computing and has the potential to break encryption keys.
Islam discussed ways in which information could be transmitted securely. One such way is through cryptographic methods. Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) guarantees security because of the laws of quantum mechanics, he said.
Read more on OWU.edu.