Bitcoin Core developers have proposed three mechanisms to address the looming threat of quantum attacks. If future quantum computers can indeed crack Bitcoin's private keys, hackers may find it much harder to steal BTC. Bitcoin Core developer Cory Fields proposed three defense mechanisms against future quantum-based theft on the Bitcoin developer mailing list: Quantum Landmines, Staked Auction, and Sats Auction. How do these mechanisms work? 1. Quantum Landmines This is designed for the original holder who still possesses the private key. The holder can embed a hidden proof of ownership in a quantum-secure address and bind a new quantum-secure public key before a quantum computer poses a real threat. In the future, if a hacker attempts to steal 1 BTC, they must provide an additional 1 BTC as collateral. The transaction enters a waiting period, such as 30 days. During this time, the original holder can use pre-prepared proof of ownership to transfer the BTC to a new, pre-linked address, while simultaneously confiscating the hacker's 1 BTC collateral. Most interestingly, the hacker cannot determine beforehand which BTC are vulnerable to attacks. 2. Staked Auction This mechanism primarily addresses a more intractable problem: many early Bitcoins may have lost their private keys, making it impossible for the original holders to prove ownership. The solution involves third parties pre-staking quantum-safe BTC and secretly committing to bid on a specific set of older BTC potentially vulnerable to quantum attacks. When a hacker attempts to steal the coins in the future, without the protection of the original holders' collateral, an auction will be held. The pre-staking third parties can reveal their bids and compete to confiscate the attacker's collateral. A crucial design element is that, under this scheme, the originally attacked BTC is destroyed, not returned to the original holder; the attacker's collateralized BTC is awarded to the auction winner. In other words, even if the original holder has lost their private key, third parties are incentivized to participate in defense, making it difficult for quantum hackers to profit easily. 3. Sats Auction This is the third method, and it doesn't require prior BTC staking. Anyone attempting to transfer old-style BTC will trigger an auction after an initial waiting period. The rules are inspired by the well-known Dollar Auction: The highest bidder wins the target BTC, but their bid is deducted. The second-highest bidder must pay their bid but receives nothing. Participants may continuously raise their bids to avoid becoming second. The auction continues, and the attacker may eventually lose all their staked funds. This mechanism even allows the original holder to actively participate in the auction to try and recover some of their assets. The common logic behind these three schemes is to use economic penalties and game theory mechanisms to make the cost of a quantum attack extremely high, even making theft economically unprofitable.