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Introduction: The Race Against the Quantum Future
For decades, modern society has relied on encryption as the invisible shield protecting banking systems, private communications, government secrets, medical records, and corporate data. However, the arrival of powerful quantum computers threatens to challenge many of today’s most trusted security standards. While large-scale quantum attacks are not yet a reality, organizations worldwide are realizing that preparing too late could leave their most valuable information exposed.
A new global survey from DigiCert reveals a growing divide between awareness and action. Businesses understand that post-quantum cryptography (PQC) is becoming essential, but many are struggling to move from planning into real-world deployment. The report highlights a worrying trend: organizations are preparing for the quantum era, yet actual implementation remains extremely limited.
The message is clear: the quantum threat is no longer considered a distant scientific possibility. It is becoming a strategic cybersecurity challenge that companies must address today.
DigiCert Survey Reveals a Growing Quantum Readiness Gap
DigiCert’s second annual Quantum Readiness Outlook shows that 87% of organizations are currently planning, testing, or implementing post-quantum cryptography initiatives. This demonstrates that most enterprises understand the importance of preparing for quantum-resistant security.
However, awareness has not translated into large-scale deployment.
Only 7% of organizations have successfully deployed quantum-safe or hybrid cryptography across most of their digital certificates. This represents only a two-percentage-point improvement compared with the previous year’s survey.
The findings reveal what DigiCert describes as an “execution gap” — businesses understand the problem, have started developing strategies, and recognize the risks, but they are struggling to complete enterprise-wide migrations.
Quantum Encryption Risks Are Arriving Faster Than Expected
One of the most concerning findings is how quickly organizations expect traditional encryption methods to become vulnerable.
According to the survey:
50% of respondents believe current encryption standards could be broken within five years.
85% expect encryption systems to become vulnerable within ten years.
These expectations show that cybersecurity leaders are no longer viewing quantum computing as a future technology issue. Instead, they see it as a timeline challenge requiring immediate preparation.
The difficulty is that replacing encryption infrastructure across a global enterprise is not a simple software update. Cryptographic systems are deeply integrated into applications, hardware, cloud environments, identity systems, and digital certificates.
The Quantum Migration Challenge: Strategy Is Easier Than Execution
Kevin Hilscher, Senior Director of Product Management at DigiCert, explained that post-quantum cryptography should not be viewed only as a technology upgrade.
Instead, organizations should treat PQC adoption as part of a broader modernization strategy.
The transition requires companies to build “crypto-agility” — the ability to quickly replace cryptographic algorithms when new threats or standards emerge.
Organizations that develop crypto-agile systems today will have greater flexibility in the future, allowing them to adapt as quantum technology evolves.
However, the survey shows that many companies are stuck between recognizing the need for change and actually implementing it.
Harvest Now, Decrypt Later: The Threat Already Exists Today
One of the biggest drivers behind quantum readiness efforts is the “harvest now, decrypt later” (HNDL) attack strategy.
In this approach, attackers collect encrypted information today and store it until quantum computers become powerful enough to break current encryption algorithms.
The danger is especially serious for information that remains valuable for many years, including:
Financial records
Government documents
Intellectual property
Medical information
Military communications
Cryptocurrency assets
The DigiCert survey found that 84% of organizations believe some of their encrypted data may already be vulnerable to HNDL attacks.
More than one-third of respondents believe over 25% of their encrypted information could eventually be exposed.
This changes the traditional cybersecurity timeline. Companies cannot simply wait until quantum computers become powerful enough. By then, stolen encrypted data may already be impossible to protect.
The First Targets of Quantum Attackers
Organizations believe financial information will become the primary target once quantum decryption becomes practical.
Banking records and financial transaction data ranked as the most attractive targets, followed by cryptocurrency private keys and digital wallets.
Cryptocurrency systems are particularly concerning because many blockchain networks depend on cryptographic signatures that may require quantum-resistant replacements.
Other high-value targets include:
Corporate intellectual property
Government secrets
Military information
Political communications
Research data
Sensitive information can maintain value for decades, meaning attackers could benefit from collecting encrypted data long before quantum computers reach maturity.
Current Enterprise Preparation Levels Remain Limited
Although many organizations have started their quantum security journey, preparation remains incomplete.
The survey found:
50% of organizations have performed quantum risk assessments.
44% have created transition plans and cryptographic inventories.
Only a small percentage have deployed quantum-safe solutions widely.
The biggest challenge is not understanding the problem. The challenge is identifying every location where encryption exists and replacing vulnerable systems without disrupting operations.
Legacy Systems Become the Biggest Barrier
The most significant obstacle identified by respondents was complexity across legacy systems.
Many enterprises operate environments built over decades, containing outdated applications, unsupported software, and hardware that was never designed for cryptographic migration.
Other barriers include:
Budget limitations
Performance concerns
Integration challenges
Lack of specialized expertise
The transition to PQC requires organizations to understand their entire cryptographic ecosystem, including certificates, algorithms, keys, and dependencies.
Without a complete inventory, companies risk leaving hidden vulnerabilities behind.
Industry Differences Show Uneven Quantum Preparation
Not every sector is moving at the same speed.
DigiCert found that:
Retail reported the lowest level of quantum readiness.
Manufacturing showed the greatest divide between highly prepared and poorly prepared organizations.
MedTech and Telecommunications & Media showed the highest confidence levels.
The differences reflect how industries view data protection.
Healthcare, telecommunications, and technology companies often manage sensitive long-term information, making quantum preparation a higher priority.
Retail organizations, however, may underestimate their exposure despite holding valuable customer payment and identity information.
Global Quantum Readiness Rankings
The survey also showed regional differences.
The United Kingdom reported the highest percentage of organizations describing themselves as quantum readiness leaders at 18%.
The United States followed closely at 17%, while Australia reported 10%.
These differences are influenced by government policies, cybersecurity investment, and regulatory pressure.
Countries that establish clear quantum migration strategies early may gain a security advantage as quantum computing advances.
Government and Technology Giants Accelerate the Quantum Transition
The pressure to adopt post-quantum cryptography is increasing as governments and major technology companies establish migration timelines.
The publication of NIST’s post-quantum cryptography standards in August 2024 provided organizations with a clearer technical roadmap.
Major technology companies are also preparing:
Google has targeted 2029 for PQC migration.
Microsoft has announced similar long-term migration goals.
Governments are introducing policies requiring stronger quantum-resistant security.
These developments are pushing organizations to move beyond research and begin practical implementation.
Deep Analysis: Understanding the Quantum Cryptography Challenge
Why Current Encryption Is Vulnerable
Many modern encryption systems depend on mathematical problems that are extremely difficult for classical computers.
Examples include:
RSA
ECC (Elliptic Curve Cryptography)
Diffie-Hellman Key Exchange
A sufficiently powerful quantum computer could use algorithms such as Shor’s algorithm to solve these mathematical problems much faster.
Example:
Current encryption assessment example
openssl rsa -check -in private_key.pem
Generate cryptographic inventory
find / -name ".pem" -o -name ".key"
The Importance of Cryptographic Inventory
Organizations cannot protect what they cannot see.
A quantum migration strategy requires identifying:
Search certificates
openssl x509 -in certificate.pem -text -noout
Check encryption algorithms
openssl ciphers -v
Companies need to discover:
Where encryption is used.
Which algorithms are deployed.
Which systems depend on vulnerable certificates.
Which applications require migration.
The Future Role of Hybrid Cryptography
Many organizations will not immediately replace traditional encryption.
Instead, they will use hybrid approaches combining:
Traditional Cryptography + Post Quantum Cryptography
This provides protection during the transition period.
Hybrid security allows companies to maintain compatibility while gradually adopting quantum-resistant standards.
Why Crypto-Agility Will Become a Business Requirement
Future cybersecurity environments will require organizations to quickly replace algorithms.
A crypto-agile architecture allows:
Algorithm_A → Algorithm_B → Algorithm_C
without rebuilding entire systems.
This flexibility will become as important as traditional cybersecurity practices such as vulnerability management and patching.
What Undercode Say:
Quantum computing represents one of the biggest security transformations in modern technology history.
The DigiCert report highlights an uncomfortable reality: companies know the quantum threat exists, but many are still waiting instead of acting.
The biggest mistake organizations can make is assuming quantum attacks are only a future problem.
Cybersecurity history shows that attackers prepare years before major technologies become mainstream.
The HNDL strategy proves this point.
Encrypted information stolen today may become readable tomorrow.
The value of data is not always immediate.
Government secrets, financial records, medical research, and corporate intellectual property can remain valuable for decades.
Quantum migration should therefore be treated as long-term risk management.
Organizations should not wait until quantum computers become powerful enough to break encryption.
By that point, migration could already be too late.
The transition will also expose weaknesses in enterprise security management.
Many companies still do not have complete visibility into their cryptographic infrastructure.
Unknown certificates, outdated algorithms, and forgotten systems create hidden risks.
The quantum era will reward organizations that already practice strong security hygiene.
Companies that build crypto-agility today will be better prepared for future threats beyond quantum computing.
The cybersecurity industry is moving toward a new reality where encryption cannot remain unchanged forever.
Algorithms that are considered secure today may become obsolete tomorrow.
This is similar to how organizations eventually moved away from weak protocols such as SSL and outdated hashing algorithms.
The quantum transition will likely follow the same pattern.
Early adopters will gain stronger protection and competitive advantages.
Organizations that delay may face expensive emergency migrations later.
The next five years will probably determine which companies successfully adapt.
Quantum readiness is not only a cybersecurity project.
It is a digital transformation strategy.
It requires cooperation between security teams, developers, executives, cloud providers, and regulators.
The organizations that understand this will not simply survive the quantum transition.
They will become more resilient in an increasingly complex digital world.
✅ DigiCert survey findings are consistent with reported industry trends.
The cybersecurity industry widely recognizes post-quantum cryptography migration as an emerging priority, especially following NIST’s publication of PQC standards.
✅ Harvest Now, Decrypt Later is a real cybersecurity concern.
Security researchers have repeatedly warned that attackers may collect encrypted data today for future decryption capabilities.
✅ Legacy systems are a major migration challenge.
Large enterprises often struggle with outdated infrastructure, making cryptographic replacement one of the most complex cybersecurity projects.
❌ Quantum computers capable of breaking modern encryption do not currently exist.
While quantum progress is accelerating, current machines are not powerful enough to defeat widely deployed encryption systems.
Prediction
(+1) Organizations that begin quantum migration early will gain major cybersecurity advantages during the next decade. Companies investing in cryptographic inventories, hybrid encryption, and crypto-agility will be better positioned against future quantum threats.
(+1) Governments and technology giants will continue pushing quantum-safe standards, accelerating enterprise adoption.
(-1) Organizations that delay preparation may face expensive emergency migrations when quantum risks become more immediate.
(-1) Companies relying heavily on legacy infrastructure may struggle the most, creating security gaps that attackers could exploit before full quantum protection becomes available.
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