Post-quantum cryptography is now one pip-install away for the entire Python ecosystem. With funding from the Sovereign Tech Agency, we implemented support for ML-KEM, the NIST-standard key-establishment primitive, and ML-DSA, the NIST-standard digital-signature primitive, in pyca/cryptography.
Remember, the reason to do this now is because there’s no emergency. And because you will make your systems crypto agile, which is always a good idea.
Symmetric algorithms, like AES, are not affected by quantum algorithms (except for Grover’s algorithm, but it is too slow to be useful).
Post-quantum is for asymmetric algorithms, like RSA, and are affect by quantum algorithms. This is what post-quantum is needed for.
yet another bruce • August 10, 2026 9:02 AM
I had thought that another reason we are doing this now is to discourage Harvest Now, Decrypt Later (HNDL) attacks.
Between HNDL and AI data centers it is getting difficult to find an HDD at a reasonable price.
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Sidebar photo of Bruce Schneier by Joe MacInnis.
someone • August 10, 2026 7:21 AM
why worry about this if aes-256 is uncrackable ?