Education
Learn quantum cryptography in 4 weeks: video + reading path
This is the on-site companion to our downloadable learning guide — five layers from Shor's algorithm through migration evidence, with video embeds and authoritative links.
Week 1 — The threat
Watch: minutephysics Shor's companion · Veritasium companion · PBS period-finding
Read: Shor's for CISOs · Grover's and AES · NIST PQC overview
Checkpoint: Explain why RSA breaks but AES-256 mostly survives.
Week 2 — HNDL urgency
Watch: Jeremy Allison HNDL · Michele Mosca lecture companion
Read: Mosca worked examples · HNDL collection vectors · GRI Mosca report
Checkpoint: Apply X + Y > Z to one data class using the Mosca calculator.
Week 3 — NIST standards
Watch: NIST algorithms companion · Menezes ML-KEM/ML-DSA · RWPQC 2026 update
Read: FIPS 203–205 primer · FIPS 203 PDF · ML-KEM guide
Checkpoint: Name ML-KEM, ML-DSA, and SLH-DSA and what each replaces.
Week 4 — Migration in practice
Watch: Dustin Moody strategy · CISA readiness · OQS hands-on
Read: Migration phases · Hybrid TLS guide · Attack surface map · NIST IR 8547
Checkpoint: Describe hybrid TLS and list three non-HTTPS crypto locations.
Download the full guide
Quantum crypto learning guide (PDF/Markdown)
Explore the Learn hub topic for library links and PQC open-source tools.
Continue on the Q-Day hub: Quantum crypto foundations
References & further reading
Authoritative primary sources cited in this article. Summaries are our own — follow links for full context.
Last verified 2026-06-21
- How Quantum Computers Break Encryption | Shor's Algorithm Explainedminutephysics (YouTube) · 2019Accessible explainer on Shor's algorithm, period-finding, and why RSA breaks on a large quantum computer.
- What Makes Quantum Computers SO Powerful?Veritasium (YouTube) · 2023Covers Shor's threat, harvest-now-decrypt-later, NIST PQC competition, and migration urgency.
- Quantum Threat Timeline Report (Mosca inequality)Global Risk Institute · 2023Dr. Michele Mosca's X + Y > Z framework for harvest-now-decrypt-later exposure planning.
- FIPS 203 — Module-Lattice-Based Key-Encapsulation Mechanism (ML-KEM)NIST · 2024-08Standardized post-quantum key encapsulation (formerly Kyber).
- NIST IR 8547: Transition to Post-Quantum Cryptography StandardsNIST · 2024Federal transition guidance with deprecation timelines for quantum-vulnerable algorithms.
- CISA Post-Quantum Cryptography InitiativeCISA · 2024US government guidance on quantum risk, migration planning, and PQC adoption.
- Open Quantum Safe ProjectOpen Quantum Safe · 2024liboqs reference implementations, TLS integrations, and prototype PQC demos.
- What Is Post-Quantum Cryptography?NIST · 2024Official overview of NIST's PQC project, finalized standards, and the harvest-now-decrypt-later threat model.
See your exposure with evidence
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