Quantum Readiness for Developers

Quantum readiness is often framed as a strategic or regulatory problem, yet for developers it starts much closer to home: inside the repositories they work with every day. Most modern applications rely on inherited cryptographic code, copied snippets, or long-standing libraries whose algorithms were designed decades ago. While many of these algorithms still function correctly, post-quantum timelines are accelerating and regulatory scrutiny is increasing, which means developers are now expected to identify, document, and justify the cryptography embedded in their codebases.

Large technology organisations have been clear on this point. IBM has consistently positioned quantum readiness as a discovery and inventory challenge long before it becomes a replacement exercise. The logic is simple: no organisation can plan a responsible transition to post-quantum cryptography without first establishing an accurate, machine-readable and repeatable view of its current cryptographic footprint. This emphasis on visibility closely reflects the realities faced by development teams working with complex, long-lived software.

no organisation can plan a responsible transition to post-quantum cryptography without first establishing an accurate, machine-readable and repeatable view of its current cryptographic footprint.

For developers, quantum readiness therefore starts with detection. Without reliable detection, audits, compliance reporting, and future roadmaps inevitably rest on assumptions rather than evidence. This concern is now explicitly reflected in recent US government guidance, which warns that organisations delaying cryptographic inventory and assessment risk being unprepared for mandatory post-quantum migration timelines beginning as early as 2026.

To address this, SCANOSS is working with IBM and developing a crypto finder implementation as part of the SCANOSS Crypto Insight Framework. This open source framework is designed to help organisations identify, inventory, and manage cryptographic implementations across their software assets in preparation for Q-Day, the moment when practical quantum computing will render many current cryptographic algorithms vulnerable. The focus is deliberately practical: to expose cryptography where it exists in source code, regardless of how it entered the repository.

At its core, the approach relies on source-level analysis rather than declarations alone. By scanning code directly, developers can detect cryptographic primitives and algorithm identifiers wherever they appear, including in reused code and transitive dependencies. Combined with the SCANOSS Encryption Dataset, this enables teams to surface algorithms such as RSA, DSA, and legacy hash functions that present known long-term or regulatory risk. This aligns closely with IBM’s public guidance: establish a comprehensive inventory first, then prioritise action based on factual data.

Detection, however, is only the first step. The Crypto Insight Framework is designed to support structured auditing by turning findings into consistent, machine-readable cryptographic intelligence. A meaningful cryptographic analysis answers clear questions: which algorithms are present, where they are implemented, and what cryptographic purpose they serve. When this information is expressed in a structured form, it becomes usable across security reviews, CBOM and SBOM enrichment, and automated compliance checks.

Quantum readiness is an ongoing process of exposure, documentation, and monitoring. Developers play a central role in this process by ensuring cryptographic usage is visible and auditable directly at source level.

From a developer perspective, quantum readiness is about transparency and control, not immediate algorithm replacement. Open source-based detection and inventorying provide a scalable way to achieve this. Teams that establish clear, machine-readable cryptographic visibility today will be far better prepared for the regulatory, security, and operational demands that Q-Day will bring. As the SCANOSS Crypto Insight Framework evolves, it represents a concrete step towards making cryptographic risk explicit, actionable, and discoverable, ready for the quantum era.