Security experts fear Q-Day, the day when quantum computers become so powerful that they can crack today's passwords. Some experts estimate that this day will come within the next ten years. Password checks are based on cryptographic one-way functions, which calculate an output value from an input value.
Anyone in possession of this DNA pool holds the security system's lock. The polymerase chain reaction can be used to test a key, or input value, which takes the form of a short sequence of nucleotides. During the PCR, this key searches the pool of hundreds of millions of DNA molecules for the molecule with the matching input value, and the PCR then amplifies the output value located on the same molecule. DNA sequencing is used to make the output value readable.
A little more thought has already gone into the idea of using the technology for the forgery-proof certification of works of art. For instance, if there are ten copies of a picture, the artist can mark them all with the DNA pool -- perhaps by mixing the DNA into the paint, spraying it onto the picture or applying it to a specific spot.
Furthermore, it would support counterfeit-proof tracking along supply chains of industrial goods or raw materials."The aviation industry, for example, has to be able to provide complete proof that it uses only original components. Our technology can guarantee traceability," Grass says. In addition, the method could be used to label the authenticity of original medicines or cosmetics.