A hacker has taken a small but impressive step to crack the encryption that protects Bitcoin, but the claim has already sparked controversy over its implications.
Project Eleven said it awarded a 1 BTC “Q-Day Prize” to Giancarlo Lelli for deriving the private key from the public key using mass computing.
Small Quantum Explosion, Big Debate Over Its Probability
The test used a 15-bit elliptic curve, much smaller than the 256-bit standard used by Bitcoin and most other blockchains.
The company described its results as the largest public display of a quantum attack for elliptic curve cryptography. It added that the operation shows that the threat is moving from a concept to an early execution.
However, the scale gap remains large. A 15-bit key has over 32,000 search positions. Bitcoin security it relies on numbers so large that they cannot be brute-forced by modern machines.
Prosecutors were quick to challenge the claims. A public comment on the announcement argued that the method relies heavily on classical verification, rather than quantitative calculations.
In simple words, the quantum system did not perform the most difficult part of the attack itself.
That difference is important. A real quantum attack can use Shor’s algorithm to successfully solve the problems of protecting digital signals. Partial or hybrid methods do not guarantee this possibility.
However, the results add to the pattern. Previous shows broke the minor keys. At the same time, research shows that the weapons required for real-world attacks may be lower than previously thought.
For Bitcoin, there is no immediate risk. However, this debate reflects a long-term issue. Enhancing cryptography on networks in this category is slow and difficult, although other secure methods already exist.
Right now, the takeaway is narrow. Quantum progress is real, but its results remain far-fetched—and contested.
A note New Quantum Break Claim Sparks Bitcoin Security Debate appeared for the first time BeInCrypto.
