China has launched a new cyber program to develop an advanced cryptographic algorithm, in an effort to tackle the possibility of cyber attacks caused by quantum computation.

The program, initiated by China Electronics Technology Group Cooperation, aims to create new encryption theories and design new cryptographic algorithms, as the fast development of quantum computation has created new security threats to the country’s cyberspace and cloud computing.

“The fast development of quantum computation has posed a great threat and challenge to encryption technologies. Once practical quantum computation is realized, the current public key cryptosystem based on discrete logarithm problems will be easily decoded, meaning that our current internet system is no longer safe,” Zhang Zhenfeng, a research fellow of the program, told Science and Technology Daily, adding that the U.S. and Europe have already initiated the standardization of cryptographic algorithms out of security concerns.

“China’s self-design cryptographic algorithm will create a quantum security model and quantum reduction method,” Zhang added.