Zcash Developers Set January Target For Quantum-resistant Payments After ‘Bunker Mode’ Scare

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Zcash developer Zakura plans to add support for hash-based, quantum-resistant signatures in January, but that is a development target, not a confirmed date for activating the change across the network. The initial work focuses on transparent transactions; shielded payments need separate safeguards, and no practical attack on cryptocurrency wallet keys has been demonstrated.

Zcash developer Zakura is targeting January to add support for hash-based signatures designed to resist attacks from future quantum computers, according to an engineering post published October 9. The target concerns software support, not a confirmed date for activating the change on the Zcash network, and the initial work focuses on transparent transactions, leaving separate security work for shielded payments.

“Our team plans for post-quantum signature opcodes to land in Zcash in January,” Zakura engineer Roman Akhtariev wrote. The opcodes are instructions that would let the network check hash-based signatures when approving payments. The method is intended to replace reliance on the public-key cryptography that could be at risk if quantum computers become capable of breaking the underlying mathematics.

The proposed signatures use hashes, or digital fingerprints generated from secret data, to prove that a payment is authorized. The design is meant to prevent a future attacker from using an exposed public key to forge an owner’s approval. But Zakura’s January target does not establish when the software will be ready for network activation; the post provided no confirmed activation date.

The planned initial protection covers Zcash’s transparent pool, where addresses and transaction amounts are visible on the blockchain. CoinDesk’s calculation using ZecStats data put 11.96 million of the 16.98 million ZEC issued in that pool on October 9, or roughly seven in 10 coins. Shielded payments conceal senders, recipients and amounts, but require separate safeguards.

Which Zcash Funds Come First

The scope matters because the January target does not amount to a complete quantum-resistant upgrade for every kind of Zcash payment. The transparent pool held about 70% of issued ZEC on the reported date, so protecting that portion would address a large share of coins, while leaving shielded transactions with distinct technical risks.

For transparent addresses, a public key is initially concealed behind a hash. When a payment is made, the public key is revealed; moving remaining funds to a fresh address can place them behind a key that has not yet been disclosed. The proposed signature change aims to protect authorization even when payment activity exposes a key. These design details describe intended safeguards, not evidence that a quantum attack is imminent or that the upgrade is already deployed.

Zakura has also developed a separate private lookup tool for wallets. It uses private information retrieval so a wallet can request balance records without giving a server a readable list of the addresses being checked. That can reduce what the server learns about a user’s address links, but it does not make transparent payments private: transactions and balances remain public on the blockchain.

The Bunker Warning Behind the Plan

The development follows a warning from Ethereum researcher Justin Drake, who urged cryptocurrency holders to prepare for “bunker mode.” As reported by CoinDesk, Drake said that in a worst-case scenario AI could help find a shortcut through the mathematics securing bitcoin and ether wallets “in months, not years.” That was a warning about a possible future risk, not a report of a demonstrated attack.

No practical attack on the wallet keys of these networks has been demonstrated, according to the source report. Ethereum’s broader migration to quantum-resistant cryptography has a target of December 2029, providing context for the different timelines under discussion without establishing that either project will meet its target.

Zcash has both transparent and shielded payment systems. In addition to transparent-address key exposure, its quantum recovery design warns of a separate possibility: an attacker could collect encrypted shielded payment records now and try to decrypt them after a future mathematical breakthrough. The January signature work described by Zakura does not, by itself, resolve that shielded-payment concern.

“Our team plans for post-quantum signature opcodes to land in Zcash in January.”

— Roman Akhtariev, in an engineering post for Zakura

Activation and Shielded Protections

Several key details remain unsettled. Zakura named January as a target, but did not confirm a network activation date, the steps needed before activation, or whether the timetable could change. The source report also does not specify when the proposed software will be ready for broader use.

The initial plan focuses on transparent transactions. How shielded payments will be protected, and on what timeline, remains unclear from the announcement. Zakura’s private lookup tool addresses what a wallet server can learn when retrieving balances; it is not described as a replacement for cryptographic safeguards on shielded payment records.

The broader threat is also uncertain. Drake’s warning describes a possible worst case, while the report says no practical attack on wallet keys has been demonstrated. The likelihood and timing of a quantum breakthrough, and whether AI would make one feasible sooner, are not established by the available information.

Development Before Network Activation

The next stated milestone is Zakura’s planned work on post-quantum signature opcodes in January. Readers should distinguish that software-development target from deployment: the source provides no confirmed date for activating the changes across Zcash or details about the process between implementation and activation.

Separately, an experimental version of Zakura’s private balance-lookup feature is available through the “Private queries” setting in the Vizor wallet. The source does not give a date for a full release. Further announcements would need to clarify the upgrade’s readiness, network activation plans, and how developers intend to address the distinct risks affecting shielded payments.

Key Questions

What is Zakura targeting for January?

Zakura plans to add Zcash support for post-quantum signature opcodes that check hash-based payment signatures. January is a development target, not a confirmed network activation date.

Will the planned change protect all Zcash payments?

The initial plan focuses on transparent transactions. Shielded payments have separate security concerns, and the source report does not give a timeline or complete plan for protecting them.

What does the private lookup tool do?

Zakura’s tool uses private information retrieval so a wallet can check balances without giving its server a readable list of requested addresses. It does not hide transparent transactions or their public blockchain data.

Has a practical quantum attack on cryptocurrency wallets been demonstrated?

The source report says no practical attack on the wallet keys discussed has been demonstrated. The warning concerns a possible future risk; its timing and likelihood remain uncertain.

When will the Zcash network activate the upgrade?

No activation date has been confirmed. Zakura’s announcement gives a January target for the signature instructions to be added, but does not specify when the network would activate them.

Source: rss