A Bitcoin developer has suggested several ways to make quantum attackers lose their own BTC if they try to steal coins that remain vulnerable to future quantum computing attacks.
The concept was shared by Cory Fields, who works on Bitcoin software at MIT’s Digital Currency Initiative, in a post to the Bitcoin development mailing list. The proposals explore how BTC could discourage future quantum-enabled theft through financial incentives, time-locks, and auction-based mechanisms. Fields presented three ideas as “thought experiments,” rather than finalized proposals, while stating that implementing them through a soft fork could be possible.
Trap for Crypto Thieves
The first concept, called Quantum Landmines, would allow Bitcoin holders to secretly attach a cryptographic proof to a small quantum-safe output before quantum computers become capable of breaking existing cryptography. If an attacker later steals a vulnerable Bitcoin output, new post-quantum spending rules would require the stolen coins to be moved alongside an equivalent amount of the attacker’s own quantum-safe BTC as collateral.
The resulting output would remain locked for a specified period, such as 30 days, unless someone could provide proof of prior knowledge of the original private key. The legitimate owner could then reveal their previously committed proof and claim the attacker’s collateral.
Fields’ second proposal, the Staked Auction, addresses vulnerable Bitcoin holdings whose private keys may be lost and therefore lack protection through landmines. Under this model, users would stake quantum-safe BTC before the threat materializes. This effectively places advance bids on vulnerable outputs. If an attacker attempts to steal a targeted holding, they would need to provide matching collateral.
Once an initial waiting period expires, the auction would allow stakers to reveal their bids and claim portions of the attacker’s collateral. Other participants could submit lower or higher bids, and the final outcome would be determined by the auction rules.
A third concept is called the Sats Auction, which would remove the requirement for users to stake coins in advance. Instead, every attempted spend of legacy Bitcoin would trigger an auction after an initial time-lock period. The highest bidder would receive the coins minus their bid, while the second-highest bidder would lose their bid without receiving anything.
According to Fields, this structure could make continued participation increasingly expensive for attackers, and potentially discourage them from attempting theft altogether. However, the developer acknowledged that several important design questions remain unresolved, including collateral ratios, auction rules, the treatment of losing bids, as well as the distribution of recovered funds.
Threat Overblown?
Last month, Alice & Bob estimated that a quantum computer using 29,588 cat qubits could crack a Bitcoin private key in about 62 minutes. But not everyone is worried.
Earlier this year, on-chain analyst James Check challenged claims that quantum computing could trigger a catastrophic Bitcoin market collapse. He argued that even the theft and sale of Satoshi-era coins would not threaten the network’s survival.
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