ChainCatcher reports that the Zcash development team plans to introduce post-quantum signature support to the network in January. Zakura engineer Roman Akhtariev stated on the engineering blog that the team intends to implement post-quantum signature opcodes on Zcash in January. These opcodes will enable Zcash to verify hash-based signatures, thereby defending against quantum computing attacks. The exact network activation date has not yet been confirmed. This upgrade aims to prevent attackers from reverse-engineering current public keys to forge payment authorizations from wallet owners. Initially, the upgrade will protect transparent transactions. Zcash supports two types of transactions: shielded transactions, which conceal the sender, recipient, and amount; and transparent transactions, which, like Bitcoin, expose addresses and amounts on the blockchain. According to CoinDesk’s calculations based on ZecStats data, approximately 11.96 million of the 16.98 million ZEC in circulation as of Thursday are held in the transparent pool, accounting for about 70%. The January upgrade primarily targets this public portion. Additionally, Zakura has developed a private query tool that allows wallets to check balances without exposing associated addresses to servers; an experimental version is already available in the “Private queries” setting of the Zcash wallet Vizor. Prior to the publication of Zakura’s engineering article, Ethereum researcher Justin Drake warned holders on Thursday to prepare for “bunker mode,” stating that in the worst-case scenario, AI could find shortcuts to break the mathematical protections of Bitcoin and Ethereum wallets within “months, not years.”
Zcash developers plan to implement quantum-resistant signatures in January.
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Summary
Zcash developers plan a network upgrade in January 2026 to add support for quantum-resistant signatures. Roman Akhtariev from Zakura said the team will deploy post-quantum signature opcodes, enabling the blockchain to verify hash-based signatures and resist quantum attacks. The upgrade will initially cover transparent transactions, which account for approximately 70% of ZEC. Zakura has also released a private query tool in the experimental Vizor wallet, allowing users to check balances without exposing address links.
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