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While most messaging apps promise end-to-end encryption, they suffer from 2 fundamental flaws.

Firstly, they are usually governed by a central authority and depend on centralized servers. These servers store all the metadata of your conversations and are vulnerable to attacks. Further, the central authority also controls your data, and they can use it as they deem fit.

The second problem is that end-to-end encryption will become obsolete once we enter the age of quantum computing (more on this later).

To address these issues, a new generation of messaging apps has emerged. They are decentralized, quantum-resistant and will effectively future-proof private communication. And at the forefront of these up-and-coming messaging apps is the xx messenger.

The xx network

The xx network is a full-stack platform with a layer one blockchain that is quantum resistant. It is one of the most private communications networks in the world right now. One unique aspect of the network is that its communication layer even obfuscates the metadata of your chats. This provides an added level of security.

Any application or blockchain platform can route its traffic to the xx network for secure and quantum-proofed end-to-end communication.

The crowning jewel of the network is its decentralized messaging application, xx messenger. It embodies all the features that the xx network promises. It is an end-to-end quantum secure messaging application that obfuscates metadata.

Both the xx network and the messenger are the creation of David Chaum, a computer scientist and cryptographer known as the 'godfather of cryptocurrency'. In 1982, way before Satoshi Nakamoto published his now-famous white paper, Chaum published a dissertation titled, "Computer Systems Established, Maintained, and Trusted by Mutually Suspicious Groups,". This was the first blockchain protocol to exist.

Features of the xx messenger

xx messenger is not just a proof-of-concept utilizing state of the art quantum technology; it is a full-fledged messenger with modern features expected from any top-of-the-line messaging application. It offers popular features such as group chats, audio, and video sharing. It is also very easy to sign up on xx messenger. You do not have to link an existing account, number, or email ID.

Instead, you only have to provide a pseudonym. This makes it free from any form of real-world identification. The application only relies on its underpinning privacy-preserving technology to give users the ultimate privacy communication experience.

The quantum computing problem

We have repeatedly used the phrase quantum protected or quantum proofing, but to really appreciate this feature, we must understand what quantum computing refers to in this context.

Quantum computing applies the principle of quantum physics to the world of computers. Quantum physics relates to understanding problems and physical concepts at atomic and sub-atomic levels. The working of a computer or its smallest unit, a transistor, can also be put in terms of quantum physics.

Today's computers use the binary digits - 0 and 1 - as the most basic levelled instructions. In machine language, 1 refers to a true statement, and 0 refers to a false statement. A combination of these digits can be used to form complex instructions, and that is how all computer instructions are formed.

But due to the concept of 'Quantum superposition', it is possible for a machine to read both digits simultaneously. While quantum computers do not exist now, experts believe that it is only a matter of time before they do. These computers will be extremely powerful and would be able to crack the encryption standards we use today in minutes.

Chaum and his team at xx network have developed a quantum secure consensus algorithm known as xxBFT consensus to circumvent this problem.

The consensus model ensures that the network is protected from quantum computing attacks. The application's message mixing protocol called xx Cmix ensures that encryption cannot be broken and also provides a metadata shredding feature.

A decentralized network

On the other side of privacy is decentralization. It ensures that no organization, third-party or even the xx network itself can access a sender's or recipient's data. The xx messenger is built on top of the decentralized xx network.

The xx network uses a randomly selected pool of nodes on the network to help encrypt messages in sets of 1,000. The nodes continuously shuffle these messages and encrypt them. The nodes have an incentive to participate in the encryption they are rewarded in the blockchain's native currency for their effort in securing the network.

The xx network is also an open-source platform, meaning anyone with the technical know-how can contribute to the network and any application on it, including the xx messenger. The source code of the application is written in the Golang programming language.

The xx messenger aims to fill a gap in the market by providing a decentralized and quantum secure infrastructure that is robust and easy to use. The application is currently available on both IOS and Android Play Store for download.

Read more:
Is the XX messenger the future of private communication? - CNBCTV18

The cybersecurity industry is founded upon two types of competition: that between security vendors and cybercriminal adversaries, and that between the vendors themselves.

Whats unusual about the situation is the way in which these two battlegrounds are connected; to prevent threat actors from infecting devices with malware and infiltrating business networks, cybersecurity vendors often have to establish a temporary truce.

This balance between competition and collaboration is characterized by Jaya Baloo, CISO at antivirus company Avast, as a friendly rivalry that allows for all the largest market players to work hand-in-hand when it is important to do so.

In conversation with TechRadar Pro at MWC 2022, Baloo spoke to the unconventional relationship between vendors in the sector. She insists the cybersecurity community is focused first and foremost on shielding people against attack, and that turning a profit is a secondary consideration.

I dont really care which antivirus youre using, so long as youre using one, she told us. Were still seeing so many people attacked on so many different devices, so our biggest concern is the people who are completely unprotected.

In the coming years, there is expected to be a blending together of various emerging technologies, which will create the foundation for new digital experiences for consumers and businesses.

At MWC 2022, for example, there was plenty of talk about the interplay between 5G, AI, IoT and edge computing, a heady mixture that will enable use cases ranging from driverless cars to autonomous factories and more.

However, this level of interaction between technologies is bound to create headaches for security professionals, noted Baloo, especially if new products and services are not developed with security front-of-mind.

There is an organic and orgasmic coming together of technologies right now, she said. But this will involve an increase in complexity, and complexity is the enemy of security.

In a scenario such as this, cybersecurity companies stand the best chance of shielding customers from attack if they share intelligence on new vectors, vulnerabilities and cybercriminal groups.

Baloo highlighted the work of the Avast threat intelligence team, which publishes regular reports unpacking its discoveries. One recent report analyzed an increase in phishing attacks on Ukrainian companies in the leadup to the Russian invasion, for example, and the previous instalment covered the spike in DDoS hacktivism.

When the threat intelligence team discovers a new malware strain or route of attack, not only does Avast build protections into its own services where possible, but also offers assistance to the victims and alerts the wider community to its findings, Baloo explained.

We work with all the people youd think wed be competing against. Theres a very healthy level of dialogue across the ecosystem, she told us.

Thats why its so much fun; were collaborating with like-minded people to take down the bad guys. I love our threat intelligence work.

Asked whether there are any instances in which Avast would not share intelligence, say, if withholding information had the potential to confer a competitive advantage, Baloo gave us a disapproving shake of the head. When its information about the bad guys, we share. Its as simple as that.

Last year, the cybersecurity news cycle was dominated by the SolarWinds attack and Log4J vulnerability, both of which highlighted the dangers posed by the software supply chain, a source of risk often overlooked by businesses.

Despite the commotion that surrounded both incidents, Baloo told us she expects to see more of the same in 2022, because the necessary lessons have still not been learned.

Supply chain attacks are not going anywhere, she said. The biggest problem is that we dont fully understand our potential points of weakness.

Weve reached a certain level of maturity in terms of the technologies we use, but dont understand how they interlink to create areas of weakness.

This is an issue that affects open source software to the same extent as proprietary services, notes Baloo. The fact that code is available for anyone to pore over does not necessarily mean someone has done so with the requisite level of scrutiny, as Log4j demonstrated.

However, Baloo is optimistic that regulation requiring companies to maintain greater oversight over their software bill of materials (SBOM) could play a role in minimizing risk for their customers.

In the aftermath of the SolarWinds attack, for example, US President Biden put in place an executive order that led to new guidance that requires software vendors to provide a comprehensive SBOM as part of the government procurement process.

The US stopped short of requiring vendors to provide SBOMs to all customers, but the hope is that the practice will become more mainstream and, at the very least, that new regulation will raise the profile of supply chain-related risk.

Not only are cybersecurity companies tasked with anticipating the kinds of attacks that may threaten customers in the short-term, but they must also look further ahead and further afield.

Another developing field of technology expected to have a significant impact on the cybersecurity landscape is quantum computing, which happens to be an additional area of expertise for Baloo, who advises the World Economic Forum on the issue.

Quantum computers solve problems in an entirely different way to classical machines, exploiting a phenomenon known as superposition (whereby subatomic particles exist in multiple states at once) to perform certain calculations many times faster than is currently possible.

Although the worlds most powerful quantum processors currently offer too few quantum bits (qubits) to establish a meaningful advantage over traditional supercomputers, the maturation of quantum computing will create various problems from a security perspective.

Most significantly, large-scale quantum computers will have enough horsepower to break modern cryptography. It is a mistake, therefore, to assume that information protected by encryption today will remain secure for years to come. State-sponsored threat actors may already be collecting large quantities of encrypted data in the hope of one day being able to access it.

Quantum computing will answer fundamental needle-in-the-haystack scientific questions, noted Baloo. But were screwed as soon as we have a quantum computer capable of breaking current encryption.

To enjoy the benefits of quantum computing, we need a new set of cryptographic algorithms that will be unbreakable even with a quantum computer. As a cybersecurity community, we need to have a forward-looking defence, so were ready for these kinds of challenges.

Again, this is a problem on which security companies will have to collaborate closely in the coming years, both to develop new quantum-safe algorithms and push for regulation that ensures the most vulnerable portions of the economy are quantum ready.

In a scenario in which quantum-secure technologies do not develop apace with quantum computers, the foundations of modern cybersecurity will be compromised.

And the clock is ticking, warned Baloo.

Read the original post:
Friend and foe: The little-known pact at the heart of cybersecurity - TechRadar

The most exciting name in quantum computing today is Google. Last years time crystals breakthrough was the culmination of decades of academic effort from the Search giant, and it proved Big G is a clear front-runner in the world of cutting-edge quantum physics research.

Despite having virtually no B2B presence in the quantum computing marketplace, the Mountain View company managed to leverage itself as one of the most important players in the field.

Googles position comes as a bit of a surprise when you consider the competition. D-Waves been making quantum computers for about as long as Google has been in business. And both Microsoft and IBM have focused quantum computing ecosystems generating revenue today to offset their massive research expenditures.

But Googles not as big a newcomer to the field as you might imagine. Its quantum ambitions go all the way back to at least 2005-2006, when its AI division began working on algorithms designed to run on D-Wave quantum computing chips.

Eventually, the partnership would pay off and, in 2009, D-Wave and Google demonstrated quantum speedup for an image classification algorithm.

Fast-forward to 2022 and Googles managed to build at least three gate-based quantum processors of its own, demonstrated a new phase of matter (time crystals),and supposedly achieved quantum supremacy. Not bad for a company most people wouldnt associate with the field of quantum physics.

In fact, if you take a look at the whole picture, its clear that Google or, to be more accurate, its parent company Alphabet has its sights set on being the worlds premiere quantum computing organization.

Weve seen this kind of focus before when the company pivoted from mobile-first to AI-firstin 2016. And, arguably, Googles managed to nab the top spot among US AI companies in the time since.

Googles taken the same tried-and-true approach to building out its quantum ambitions. And, based on recent developments, it appears as though the Mountain View companys long-term plans are starting to come into focus.

Googles working with institutions ranging from NASA to Stanford to develop the quantum computing systems of the future. Its work demonstrating quantum advantage in gate-based quantum systems and the aforementioned time crystals breakthrough has cemented it as a stalwart member of the quantum physics world.

But research at the edge is hard to monetize.Thatswhy Microsoftrecently partnered upwithPasqal to round out its cloud-based quantum access offerings while it continues to research its far out topographical qubit ideas.

And D-Wave spent decades developing useful quantum computers capable of solving problems right away before it finally began researching futuristic gate-based systems in earnest.

Even IBM, Googles closest running mate in the research field among big tech outfits, has prioritized cloud access for business clients over its own monumental research efforts.

Based on everything weve seen, Googles as capable of fielding a functioning quantum-as-a-service paradigm as any other player in the field. And it may even be ahead of the pack when it comes to the race towards quantum advantage a quantum computer capable of surpassing every supercomputer on the planet.

In fact Google Quantum AI, which was founded in partnership with NASAs quantum labs, believes itll have a gate-based quantum computer capable of quantum advantage within the next decade.

Of course the competition IBM, Microsoft, and D-Wave have all made similar claims. And that makes this one of the most potentially-lucrative races in technology history.

As weve argued, IBMs off to a head start and Microsoft looks poised to dominate this market in a matter of a few years. But Googles got a few aces up its sleeves that could shake everything up.

Parent company Alphabet recently starbursted its SandboxAQ division into its own company, now a Google sibling. Its unclear exactly what SandboxAQ intends to do now that its spun out, but its positioned as a quantum-and-AI-as-a-service company. We expect itll begin servicing business clients in partnership with Google in the very near-term.

And, in doing so, Google will shore up its short-term quantum endeavors in much the same way Microsoft has recently. The major difference here is that Alphabet controls both Google and SandboxAQ, whereas Microsoft can cut its Pasqal partnership if the tide changes.

Itll be interesting to see the likes of Alphabet and Microsoft spar over future government contracts for quantum services. Where Microsoft tends to outperform Google in the bidding arena, Big G already has close ties to NASA and is intrinsically involved in its quantum ambitions for the US space program.

At the end of the day, Googles betting it all on its research arms covering a lot of ground over the next ten years. If time crystals and the companys other gate-based quantum computing research veins dont pan out, it could end up lagging too far behind the competition to matter.

Neurals take: everything weve seen in the past five years tells us the exact opposite is likely to happen.

We can safely assume we havent seen the last of Googles quantum computing research breakthroughs, and that tells us we could very well be living in the moments right before the slow-and-steady tortoise starts to make up ground on the speedy hare.

Read more from the original source:
Google wants to win the quantum computing race by being the tortoise, not the hare - The Next Web

A new programme called RoaRQ and funded by a 3m grant from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, will establish a vibrant and cross-disciplinary community of researchers in universities - including University of Bristol - in quantum computing and computer science.

The team will collaborate to address the global challenge of delivering quantum computing that is robust, reliable, and trustworthy. With substantial recent progress internationally in building ever larger quantum computers, verifying that they do indeed perform the tasks they were designed for has become a central unsolved problem in the field.

From complex software articulated in high-level languages down to the silicon chips made in foundries, 60 years of computer science and engineering has defined and refined a tower of abstractions that constitute the solid foundations of todays classical computer systems. Challenges to reliability and correctness have been facedand overcomeat many levels in the stack, and there is a wealth of insight and expertise in the diverse community of computer science researchers who work across it. Verification and testing are done at each level, with clearly defined protocols and acceptance criteria. Decades of classical computing systems research has worked out the architectures, languages and translations that bring it all together to make reliable digital systems.

Achieving reliable quantum computation faces unique challengesnot least the fragility of quantum systems due to their interactions with their environment and the fact that the state of the system during a computation cannot be measured to confirm its correctness. The very feature that makes quantum computation powerful, the exponential size of the space of states in the number of qubits, makes it hard to emulate and hence assess behaviour.

This programme will bring quantum computation research into close contact with the scientific tools, methods and (especially) mindsets of the computer science research communityacross a broad spread of the key classical computing stacks. Together, they will define the beginnings of a general framework and advance specific solutions for robust and reliable quantum computation, at key layers across the principal quantum computing stacks needed to achieve trustworthy quantum computing systems.

Over the first year, the programme directors will invite engagement from across the UKs scientific community to co-create a portfolio of funded, cross-disciplinary projects that address this ambitious goal. A series of scoping workshops will be convened to propose and discuss technical directions and to facilitate the formation of project investigator teams. Projects selected for funding will commence from April 2023.

Prof Noah Linden of Bristols School of Mathematics: "At its most ambitious, our programmewith its focus on reliability and robustnesscould lead to a completely new view of the quantum computing stack, with implications for hardware and software at every level."

Simon Benjamin, Professor of Quantum Technologies at University of Oxford, said: Its an incredibly exciting time for quantum computing, when we need people to come together from diverse backgrounds so that these machines achieve their potential as enabling tools for everyonenot just people with doctorates in quantum physics! This project is an important step in making that happen.

Tom Melham, Professor of Computer Science at University of Oxford said: This innovative programme, funded by the EPSRC, will create an entirely new scientific community in the UK aimed at making trustworthy quantum computing a reality. Our ambition is to seed innovation in the design of reliable quantum computing systems as far reaching as the revolution in VLSI chip design of the late 1970s and 80s.

Dan Browne, Professor of Physics at University College London said: Im excited to be taking part in such an innovative research programme. Quantum computing can learn a huge amount from the know how in the established computer science community. I am looking forward to sharing ideas with this community and building new collaborations.

Paul Kelly, Professor of Software Technology at Imperial College London said: This is an unusual and exciting opportunity to reach out to, establish, expand and seed the network of UK computer systems and software researchers to exploit the capabilities of quantum computingand to bridge the gap to deliver quantum-accelerated applications to realise new computational capability across diverse application domains.

Link:
March: Robust-and-Reliable-Quantum-Computing | News and features - University of Bristol

Quantum computing stocks are in the limelight, as the technology has tremendous potential to advance big data and artificial intelligence (AI). Analysts highlight that quantum computers could transform many industries, including finance, pharmaceuticals, energy, agriculture and telecom.

Recent metrics suggest the global quantum computing market could reach $9 billion in revenue by 2030, up from $260 million in 2020. Annual average growth is forecast to exceed 40% during the decade, with development gaining pace after 2025.

Regular InvestorPlace users may already know Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) andAmazon(NASDAQ:AMZN) already provide quantum computing services with Azure Quantum and Braket, respectively. But other companies are also carving their niche in this market, and their stocks are compelling buys.

With that in mind, here are the three best quantum computing stocks to buy for lucrative returns through the decade.

First on our list is Alphabet, the internet media giant with Google as one if its most prominent segments. Googles primary interest in quantum computing comes from its leading role in internet search.

Alphabet issued fourth-quarter 2021 resultson Feb. 1. Revenue increased 32% year-over-year (YOY) to $75.3 billion. Net income came in at $20.6 billion, or $30.69 per diluted share, up from $15.2 billion in the prior-year quarter. Cash and equivalents ended the period at $20.9 billion.

Management also announced an upcoming 20-for-1 stock split. Investors are now looking forward to July 1, the split date. Many retail buyers believe these events offer attractive investment opportunities.

In 2019, Googles Sycamore quantum computing chipsexecuted a task in 200 seconds that the company claimed would have taken a supercomputer 10,000 years to perform. The tech giant aims to create a useful, error-corrected quantum computer by 2029.

Understandably, Google will likely invest billions in developing the technology over the next decade. Management has just spun off its quantum computing unit, Sandbox.

GOOGL stock is up 36% over the past year, but down 3.9% since the start of 2022. Shares are trading at 24.2 times forward earnings and 7.3 trailing sales. The 12-month median price forecast for GOOGL stock is $3,500. After July 1, the stock price and analysts forecasts will change to reflect the split.

52 week range: $174.42 $236.86

Dividend Yield: 2%

Prominent technology name Honeywell manufactures numerous high-tech products, ranging from aerospace equipment to medical devices and advanced materials. In late November, it merged its Honeywell Quantum Solutions with Cambridge Quantum Computing to create Quantinuum, the largest quantum computing company in the world.

Wall Street expects Quantinuum to go public by the end of 2022. Investors also seem excited about Quantinuums first product, which involves a platform-agnostic and device-independent cybersecurity solution.

Honeywell announcedQ4 2021 results on Feb. 3. Revenue declined 3% YOY to $8.7 billion. Net income came in at $1.43 billion, or $2.05 per diluted share, up from $1.36 a year ago. Cash and equivalents ended the period at nearly $11 billion.

HON stock is down almost 8% over the past year and 6.8% year-to-date. Shares are trading at 22.4 times forward earnings and 3.9 trailing sales. Meanwhile, the 12-month median price forecast for HON stock stands at $220.

52-week range: $5.91 $11.37

Rigetti Computing has become a pioneer of full-stack quantum computing. It has launched a multi-chip processor for scalable quantum computing systems.

Its Quantum Cloud Services (QCS) platform serves global enterprises, various agencies of the U.S. government and leading research centers. Several of them include the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the U.S. Department of Energy and Palantir Technologies (NYSE:PLTR).

Management announced fiscal 2021 results on March 10. Revenue increased by 48% YOY to $8.2 million. Net loss widened to $38.2 million, or a $1.74 loss per share, compared with $26.1 million a year ago. Cash and equivalents ended the period at $11.7 million.

The tech name was founded in 2013 and went public on March 2. Rigetti completed a reverse-merger with Supernova Partners Acquisition Company II, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC).

This deal valued the company at $1.5 billion. Rigetti has received $261.75 million from the deal to accelerate its development of multiple generations of quantum processors and expand its commercial operations.

However, since going public, RGTI stock has lost more than 20%. Meanwhile, the 12-month median price forecast for the stock stands at $19. Investors interested in a young company could consider researching Rigetti further.

On the date of publication, Tezcan Gecgil did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to theInvestorPlace.comPublishing Guidelines.

Tezcan Gecgil has worked in investment management for over two decades in the U.S. and U.K. In addition to formal higher education in the field, she has also completed all 3 levels of the Chartered Market Technician (CMT) examination. Her passion is for options trading based on technical analysis of fundamentally strong companies. She especially enjoys setting up weekly covered calls for income generation.

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3 Quantum Computing Stocks to Buy Before They Go Mainstream - InvestorPlace