Imagine discovering new battery materials, designing catalysts for green energy, or synthesising novel drug molecules in a fraction of the time it currently takes. That’s the promise of quantum computing – and Finland is at the forefront of constructing it.
In Espoo, just west of Helsinki, teams at VTT Technical Research Centre and IQM Quantum Computers are developing superconducting quantum processors that can tackle problems today’s classical computers simply cannot handle.
Yet for all the technical marvels, this same transformative potential also carries serious implications for cybersecurity. The machines expected to accelerate significant real-world breakthroughs are also expected to break today’s encryption standards – as early as the 2030s.
The threat is real.
“Only by moving to quantum-safe solutions can we ensure digital services remain secure,” says Visa Vallivaara, research team lead at BLimPQC (Beyond the Limits of Post-Quantum Cryptography).
Act now, decrypt later
In Espoo, just west of Helsinki, teams at VTT Technical Research Centre and IQM Quantum Computers are developing superconducting quantum processors.Photo: Hanna Saari/Visit Espoo
VTT is at the helm of the three-year BLimPQC project. Launched in April 2025, it focuses on developing quantum-safe encryption and identification systems, along with the key-management tools needed to deploy them.
“The transition to quantum-safe encryption methods takes time, so the work must start immediately,” Vallivaara says.
“Some people think you need a quantum computer to do post-quantum cryptography, but you can run it on a normal laptop.”
“The communication that we send now on the internet…can already be stolen and later broken with a quantum computer,” says Visa Vallivaara.Photo courtesy of Visa Vallivaara
The required shift is often compared to Y2K – but broader and more complex. Y2K, which stands for “year 2000,” referred to the fear that tech systems would fail when the year changed from 1999 to 2000, confusing computers that were using two-digit year codes (“99”). The current threat has its own unnerving name: “harvest now, decrypt later” (HNDL).
“The communication that we send now on the internet – when we exchange encryption keys and then send classified information or health data – can already be stolen and later broken with a quantum computer,” Vallivaara says.
Those who start preparing early will avoid a situation where upgrades need to be done in a rush, or once data may have already been compromised.
Outsized impact
An employee is working with a quantum computer test cryostat in VTT’s research laboratory.Photo: VTT
Finland’s best-known exports, such as Nokia and Supercell, have earned global fanfare. But the country’s deepest mark on the digital world may be less visible.
“When you’re paying with your credit card, chances are when the transaction goes through all the big banking systems around the world, our solutions make sure that it’s secure and authenticated properly,” says Suvi Lampila, an SSH (Secure Shell) fellow at SSH Communications Security.
“In cybersecurity, Finland has been a far bigger player than what you might expect,” says Suvi Lampila of SSH Communications Security.Photo courtesy of Suvi Lampila
The cybersecurity company launched its Secure Shell protocol three decades ago. The result? Today, more than 95 percent of internet servers have SSH installed.
“In cybersecurity, Finland has been a far bigger player than what you might expect,” Lampila says. “Many of the fundamental security technologies powering the internet have strong origins here.”
The Finnish way
Several companies and organisations are collaborating on the BLimPQC (Beyond the Limits of Post-Quantum Cryptography) project. Photo: IQM
The BLimPQC project unites cybersecurity companies like SSH, universities and government agencies, reflecting Finland’s public–private approach to digital resilience.
“If we compete too much internally, we lose out to bigger countries,” says Vallivaara, “so we have a long tradition of collaboration between industry, academia and government.”
It’s a timely instinct. “Even the biggest companies in the world are not going to be able to tackle this PQC transition on their own,” Lampila says.
“It definitely helps that when you are collaborating on a project like this, you feel that we’re heading in the right direction together,” she says. It doesn’t end up that “we come up with a great idea and there’s no practical implementation. It’s a cross-pollination from different sides.”
Finland’s famously non-hierarchical working culture doesn’t hurt, either. Good ideas eclipse hierarchy. “It doesn’t really matter who comes up with it, as long as it’s a good idea,” says Lampila. “The barrier to advancing certain things is a lot lower in our society.”
By James O’Sullivan, July 2026
The post How Finland is future-proofing encryption for the quantum computing era appeared first on thisisFINLAND.
