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Fox News host Sean Hannity analyzes what's at the core of America's economic problems as Biden continues to blame others for his policy failures.

SEAN HANNITY: Seven months away from the midterm elections the Biden White House is in one crisis after another. Today a key inflation gauge just set another 40 year high. This impacts every single American, every American household. A whopping 6.4% increase and according to Bloomberg the average American family now can expect to spend $5,200 more this year or $433 more each month on the exact same items they bought one year ago.

Already one out of every five workers in this country is now running out of money before payday. That number is expected to get much worse and in Bidens economy, its especially worse and burdensome, for the poor and the middle class in this country. At the core of these economic woes, record high after record high gas prices. Tonight, the American people know who to blame. They said, yeah, its Joe Biden. His policies are the number one cause for the increase in fuel costs which means its more to heat and cool our homes and more we pay in every store we go to. This poll conducted by Quinnipiac. Heres a news flash for Democrats ahead of the midterms. American people, guess what? Theyve figured it out. New Green Deal, socialism is not going to work ever.

On the campaign trail, it was your candidate Joe Biden vowing to end fossil fuels. This was the predicable result. During his very first week in office, he banned the drilling in ANWR [Arctic National Wild Refuge]. We have such vast resources. We could have cheap energy for every American. He banned new exploration and auctions on federal land. He killed the Keystone XL pipeline.

The Alberta premier [Jason Kenney] said if they finished it, it would be done by now. We would have 900,000 barrels of oil a day flowing into this country from Canada. Last month the Biden administration paused all new leases on oil and gas because of climate change. What a surprise, U.S. oil and gas prices are predictably higher than ever.

In fact, costs have been rising every single month since Joe Biden took office. Vladimir Putin did not cause that. Joe Biden, New Green Deal radical socialism caused it. According to him, Vladimir Putin and COVID-19 are to blame for his woes. If its COVID, why didnt it happen under Trump?

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Sean Hannity: America has figured out Biden is causing the oil and gas crisis - Fox News

Lela Messaoudi, General secretary of Gauche Rvolutionnaire (CWI, France)

Anger at rising prices, record profits for French multinationals and shareholders, the destruction of public services, reduced rights of the unemployed, and ongoing strikes over wages for several months As in the rest of the world, instability is the rule in France.

President Emmanuel Macrons last five years in office are synonymous with heightened social tensions: the Gilets Jaunes (Yellow Vests) movement, movements for more social justice, mobilisations against the pension reform in 2019, and more besides

The Covid crisis has, for a time, anaesthetised the struggles. Using the pandemic and unable to protect the population, Macron preferred to impose a very repressive state of health emergency during the first lockdown.

The aforementioned struggles did not lead to a decisive victory against Macron and the capitalists, even though the government was forced to back down temporarily on the pensions attack. And on the political front, no party or political force has mobilised a coordinated opposition of workers and the general population against these policies.

Only France Insoumise (FI), with its 17 deputies (MPs) in the National Assembly, and its leader, Jean-Luc Mlenchon, has represented a consistent opposition to Macron.

Macron officially announced his candidacy for the presidency at the end of February, just six weeks before the first round of the election, which will be on 10 April. The war in Ukraine serves as a justification for not campaigning and for saying his re-election is a foregone conclusion.

On 18 March, Macron announced his fighting programme for the interests of the bosses! He wants later retirement at 65, compulsory work for those receiving minimum social benefits, dismantling the national education system by attacking the status of teachers and then others, a refocusing on leading sectors of energy supply (nuclear), and so forth. The same programme as the traditional right!

The capitalists thus have in Macron the political representative of their class and intend to keep him for another five years. The bourgeois (capitalist) parties, initially of the classical right, like Sarkozys Les Rpublicains or the bourgeoisified Socialist Party (SP) of Franois Hollande and Anne Hidalgo, have collapsed for the moment. Indeed, little or nothing in their programme distinguishes them from Macron and his policies.

From the point of view of the election itself, Macron is hoping for a second round with Marine Le Pen, which would see him elected hands down. There is little chance that Le Pens RN (National Rally, previously the National Front) can win. Its profile has not been able to develop over the last five years.

The nationalist right and the far-right have dominated the beginning of the election with a virulent anti-immigration campaign. But rising prices and the cost of living came back to the centre of the debate. The social issues remain central.

The right and the far-right are in crisis and are regrouping around Eric Zemmour, the racist, sexist, ultra-free-market politician. Le Pen is on the other wing, along with the Republicans.

The challenge is for workers and young people, who are most aware of the issues, to be able to express their own views as clearly as possible. We must have a vote against Macron and the capitalists, the right and the far-right, but also a vote that breaks with all the policies carried out on behalf of the capitalists by the PS and the Greens in government and in the local regions and departments.

On the political left, Jean-Luc Mlenchon of France Insoumise-Union Populaire is standing again. In the first round of the 2017 presidential election he won 19.6% of the vote, only narrowly failing to contest the second round against Macron.

Mlenchon is the only candidate capable of playing a central role in reaching those among the working classes who want to fight Macron, but also the growing number of voter abstainers.

On the basis of his Common Future programme, Mlenchon has succeeded in bringing together activists from social movements, organisations and parties in a grouping called The Popular Union (Gauche Rvolutionnaire Revolutionary Left is part of the Parliament of the Peoples Union and has been building France Insoumise since 2017).

Registering between 13% and 15% in the polls, Mlenchon is in third spot, just behind Le Pen, and Macron, who is leading. Mlenchon is now ahead of Zemmour, who is losing points, and Valrie Pcresse of the right-wing Republicans. He leaves the Green and PS candidates far behind.

The PCF (French Communist Party), unfortunately, has chosen to go it alone this time, essentially to continue to exist, and its candidate is polling around 4% to 5%.

This is not insignificant, and shows the potential of a single FI-PCF candidate. The PS, on the other hand, is hitting an all-time low of 2%-3%, at the same level as the NPA (New Anticapitalist Party) of Philippe Poutou and Olivier Besancenot, who are also running, as well as Lutte Ouvrire (Workers Struggle).

Mlenchons programme calls for: freezing prices, expanding public services, creating real jobs and raising wages. These are the crucial pillars of the programme.

The only force capable of carrying out these measures is the working class through the establishment of a workers government. But Common Future only goes halfway. It fails to deal with how to change society and end capitalism, and why we have to fight for a socialist society.

For these reasons, Gauche Rvolutionnaires campaign to support the candidacy of Mlenchon, in France Insoumise, and also with our own material, seeks to go further on certain demands by fighting for: the state monopoly of public health services, renationalisation under workers control; decent jobs for all; an increase in the minimum wage; pensions and wages; retirement at 60; increased resources for public services; the renationalisation of Energie de France and Engie; and of the railways.

We also have disagreements, such as on international issues, and the illusions that Mlenchon has in international capitalist institutions, and on a supposedly historic role for France abroad.

In the streets, in the door-to-door campaigns, and in the workplaces, campaigning for Mlenchon largely facilitates political discussion around the ways of combating the capitalists. These also provide the basis for discussion about the role that a genuine mass workers party for socialism could have in the next period.

As Mlenchons latest poster says, another world is possible! We say yes, a socialist world is necessary!

The Committee for a Workers International (CWI) is the international socialist organisation which the Socialist Party is affiliated to. The CWI is organised in many countries. We work to unite the working class and oppressed peoples against capitalism, and to fight for a socialist world.

socialistworld.net

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French presidential election: Five more years of Macron? - Socialist Party

Total contract bookings of $16.7M (5% beat) for the Full Year 2021

Total contract bookings of $1.5M (115% beat) in the Fourth Quarter 2021

Increases total contract bookings guidance midpoint 47% from $15M to $22M for 2022

Revenue of $2.1M (31% beat) for the Full Year 2021

Revenue of $1.6M (50% beat) in the Fourth Quarter 2021

Expects 2022 revenue to be 5x 2021s topline

COLLEGE PARK, Md., March 28, 2022--(BUSINESS WIRE)--IonQ (NYSE: IONQ), a leader in quantum computing, today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2021 and provided a business update.

"IonQs 2021 was outstanding. We more than tripled our initial bookings target, announced what we believe to be the worlds most powerful quantum computer, and became the worlds first public quantum computing company," said Peter Chapman, President and CEO of IonQ. "Our fourth quarter results are testament to our success in both technology development and rapid commercialization."

2021 Financial Highlights

After tripling the Companys original 2021 contract bookings forecast in September from $5 million to $15 million, IonQ beat that number again to end up at $16.7 million for the full year.

IonQ achieved revenue of $2.1 million for the full year, which was 31% above the $1.6 million IonQ forecasted on the Companys Q3 call.

Cash, cash equivalents and investments were $603 million as of December 31, 2021.

Net loss was $106.2 million and adjusted EBITDA loss was $28.3 million for 2021.*

* Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure defined under "Non-GAAP Financial Measures," and is reconciled to net loss, its closest comparable GAAP measure, at the end of this release.

2022 Financial Outlook

IonQ expects revenue for 2022 to be 5x IonQs 2021 topline. For the full year 2022, IonQ expects revenue to be between $10.2 million and $10.7 million, with between $1.8 million and $2.0 million for the first quarter.

IonQ anticipates full year 2022 bookings of between $20 million and $24 million, with between $3 million and $4 million for the first quarter.

IonQ believes that over the next two years, one or two system sales could push combined TCV contract bookings over nine figures for the three year period from 2021 to 2023.

IonQ anticipates an adjusted EBITDA loss of $55 million for the full year 2022 at the midpoint of the revenue outlook provided above.**

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**The Company cannot provide a reconciliation between its forecasted Adjusted EBITDA and net loss without unreasonable effort due to the unavailability of estimates for stock-based compensation and change in fair value of assumed warrant liabilities as these items are not within the Companys control, may vary greatly between periods and could significantly impact future financial results.

Commercial Highlights

In January, the Company announced a major commercial deal with Hyundai Motor Company to develop quantum algorithms that may improve the charging, discharging, durability, capacity, and safety of electric vehicle batteries.

IonQ is collaborating with Oak Ridge National Laboratory to research metal hydrides, which can benefit development of technologies including batteries and hydrogen storage for hydrogen powered vehicles.

In 2021, IonQ collaborated with leading organizations such as Accenture, Goldman Sachs, and GE Research.

In 2021, IonQ partnered with The University of Maryland to create the National Quantum Lab at Maryland (Q-Lab), the nations first user facility to enable hands-on access to a commercial-grade quantum computer.

Technical Highlights

In February, IonQ announced that the latest-generation IonQ Aria system achieved a record 20 algorithmic qubits, representing a massive leap forward not just for IonQ, but for the entire quantum computing industry.

In March, Microsoft announced official plans to bring IonQ Aria to the Azure Quantum Cloud, democratizing access to the worlds most powerful quantum computer. IonQ became the only company to make its quantum computers available via all three major cloud providers (Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, AWS) in 2021.

In December, IonQ announced plans to build quantum computers with barium qubits, which the Company expects will contribute to higher gate fidelity, faster gates, lower error rates, and lower system costs.

IonQs new barium qubits are already delivering on their promise of more accurate quantum computing with recent results showing a 13-fold reduction in state preparation and measurement errors.

The Company has secured a sustainable, perpetual source of barium qubits through a partnership with the U.S. Department of Energys Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL).

Earlier this year, IonQ announced the invention of a new family of quantum gates in collaboration with the Duke Quantum Center (DQC) at Duke University. IonQ believes these new gates will eventually lead to more efficient quantum algorithms requiring many fewer qubits. Importantly, the gates can only be run using the unique architecture employed by IonQ and DQC systems.

Last year, IonQ became the first team in the world to demonstrate fault-tolerant error correction in practice, as documented in a peer-reviewed Nature paper in collaboration with Duke University, the University of Maryland and the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Team Highlights

IonQ hired world-class talent, with key positions filled by Thomas Kramer as Chief Financial Officer (Opower, Cvent), Tom Jones as Chief People Officer (Blue Origin, Microsoft, Honeywell), Laurie Babinski as General Counsel and Secretary (Intuits Credit Karma), Ariel Braunstein as Senior Vice President of Product Management (Google, Lytro, Cisco), Dean Kassmann as Vice President of Research and Development (Blue Origin, Amazon), Jordan Shapiro as Vice President of Financial Planning & Analysis (NEA, Samsung), Kevin Caimi as Controller (Opower, Ernst & Young), Anant Sanchetee as Senior Director of Marketing (Meta, Dreem), and Mark Solomon as Director of Quantum Sales (IBM).

IonQ appointed Inder Singh, CFO of Arm, as an independent member of the Companys Board of Directors.

Fourth Quarter 2021 Conference Call

IonQ will host a conference call today at 4:30 p.m. Eastern time to review the Companys financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2021. The call will be accessible by telephone at 877-407-4018 (domestic) or 201-689-8471 (international) using passcode 13726155. The call will also be available live via webcast on the Companys website here, or directly here. A telephone replay of the conference call will be available at 844-512-2921 or 412-317-6671 with access code 13726155 and will be available until 11:59 PM Eastern time, April 11, 2022. An archive of the webcast will also be available shortly after the call and will remain available for 90 days.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

To supplement IonQs condensed financial statements presented in accordance with GAAP, we use non-GAAP measures of certain components of financial performance. Adjusted EBITDA is a financial measure that is not required by or presented in accordance with GAAP. Management believes that this measure provides investors an additional meaningful method to evaluate certain aspects of the companys results period over period. Adjusted EBITDA is defined as net loss before interest expense, income tax expense (benefit), depreciation and amortization expense, stock-based compensation, remeasurements of liability-classified warrants, and other nonrecurring nonoperating income and expenses. We use Adjusted EBITDA to measure the operating performance of our business, excluding specifically identified items that we do not believe directly reflect our core operations and may not be indicative of our recurring operations. The presentation of non-GAAP financial measures is not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for the financial results prepared in accordance with GAAP, and the Companys non-GAAP measures may be different from non-GAAP measures used by other companies. For IonQs investors to be better able to compare its current results with those of previous periods, the Company has shown a reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP financial measures at the end of this release.

About IonQ

IonQ, Inc. is a leader in quantum computing, with a proven track record of innovation and deployment. IonQs latest generation quantum computer, IonQ Aria, is the worlds most powerful quantum computer, and IonQ has defined what it believes is the best path forward to scale.

IonQ is the only company with its quantum systems available through the cloud on Amazon Braket, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud, as well as through direct API access. IonQ was founded in 2015 by Christopher Monroe and Jungsang Kim based on 25 years of pioneering research. To learn more, visit http://www.ionq.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Some of the forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking words. Statements that are not historical in nature, including the words "anticipate," "expect," "suggests," "plan," "believe," "intend," "estimates," "targets," "projects," "should," "could," "would," "may," "will," "forecast" and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements include those related to the Companys ability to further develop and advance its quantum computers and achieve scale; ability to attract personnel; market opportunity, anticipated growth, and future financial performance, including managements financial outlook for 2022. Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections and other statements about future events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this press release, including but not limited to: managements financial outlook for 2022; market adoption of quantum computing solutions and the Companys products, services and solutions; the ability of the Company to protect its intellectual property; changes in the competitive industries in which the Company operates; changes in laws and regulations affecting the Companys business; the Companys ability to implement its business plans, forecasts and other expectations, and identify and realize additional partnerships and opportunities; and the risk of downturns in the market and the technology industry including, but not limited to, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. You should carefully consider the foregoing factors and the other risks and uncertainties described in the "Risk Factors" section of IonQs Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2021 and other documents filed by the Company from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These filings identify and address other important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events and results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and the Company assumes no obligation and do not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. The Company does not give any assurance that it will achieve its expectation

IonQ, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations

(unaudited)

(in thousands, except share and per share data)

Three Months Ended

Year Ended

December 31,

December 31,

2021

2020

2021

2020

Revenue

$

1,648

$

-

$

2,099

$

-

Costs and expenses:

Cost of revenue (excluding depreciation and amortization)

298

86

1,040

143

Research and development

4,917

2,514

20,228

10,157

Sales and marketing

849

223

3,233

486

General and administrative

5,416

1,707

13,737

3,547

Depreciation and amortization

1,005

405

2,548

1,400

Total operating costs and expenses

12,485

4,935

40,786

15,733

Loss from operations

Originally posted here:
IonQ Announces Full Year 2021 Financial Results and Provides Business Update - Yahoo Finance

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.

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