From Simon Goodman, Griesheim, Germany
For many people, one of the biggest impacts of improved quantum computers will be the ability of these machines to factor multiples of large prime numbers, the basis of RSA cryptography. This and related cryptography approaches are the bedrock of internet banking and commerce. When a functional quantum computer emerges, this bedrock will turn to smoke, leaving our online bank accounts and purchases open to invasion (15 February, p 8).
