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arXiv:2503.21650

Hacking quantum computers with row hammer attack

Fernando Almaguer Angeles, Pedro R. Dieguez, Akshata Shenoy H., Marcin Pawłowski

Published Mar 27, 2025• 0 citations
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Abstract

We demonstrate a hardware vulnerability in quantum computing systems by exploiting cross-talk effects on an available commercial quantum computer (IBM). Specifically, based on the cross-talk produced by certain quantum gates, we implement a row hammer attack that ultimately allows us to flip a qubit. Both single-qubit and two-qubit operations are performed and analyzed. Our findings reveal that two-qubit operations applied near the target qubit significantly influence it through cross-talk, effectively compromising its state.

DOI
10.48550/arxiv.2503.21650

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We demonstrate a hardware vulnerability in quantum computing systems by exploiting cross-talk effects on an available commercial quantum computer (IBM). Specifically, based on the cross-talk produced by certain quantum gates, we implement a row hammer attack that ultimately allows us to flip a qubit. Both single-qubit and two-qubit operations are performed and analyzed. Our findings reveal that two-qubit operations applied near the target qubit significantly influence it through cross-talk, effectively compromising its state.
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Residual cross-talk in superconducting qubit devices creates a security vulnerability for emerging quantum cloud services. We demonstrate a Clifford-only Quantum Rowhammer attack—using justXXXand CNOT gates—that injects faults on IBM's 127-qubit Eagle processors without requiring pulse-level access. Experiments show that targeted hammering induces localized errors confined to the attack cycle and primarily manifests as phase noise, as confirmed by near-50% flip rates under Hadamard-basis probing. A full-lattice sweep maps QR's spatial and temporal behavior, revealing reproducible corruption limited to qubits within two coupling hops and rapid recovery in subsequent benign cycles. Finally, we leverage these properties to outline a prime-and-probe covert channel, demonstrating that the clear separability between hammered and benign rounds enables highly reliable signaling without error correction. These findings underscore the need for hardware-level isolation and scheduler-aware defenses as multi-tenant quantum computing becomes standard.
Hardware crosstalk in multi-tenant superconducting quantum computers poses a severe security threat, allowing adversaries to induce targeted errors across tenant boundaries by injecting carefully engineered pulses. We present a simulation-based study of active crosstalk attacks at the pulse level, analyzing how adversarial control of pulse timing, shape, amplitude, and coupling can disrupt a victim's computation. Our framework models the time-dependent dynamics of a three-qubit system in the rotating frame, capturing both always-on couplings and injected drive pulses. We examine two attack strategies: attacker-first (pulse before victim operation) and victim-first (pulse after), and systematically identify the pulse and coupling configurations that cause the largest logical errors. Protocol-level experiments on quantum coin flip and XOR classification circuits show that some protocols are highly vulnerable to these attacks, while others remain robust. Based on these findings, we discuss practical methods for detection and mitigation to improve security in quantum cloud platforms.
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Abstract As quantum systems move towards practical deployment, there is a need to prioritize research focused on security risks and mitigation strategies. This paper presents the current literature on vulnerabilities in different hardware implementations of quantum computers and categorizes vulnerabilities based on underlying qubit technology. The review also examines attack methodology, source, impact and mitigation strategies for two types of hardware vulnerabilities: crosstalk and side channel attacks. The aim of this paper is to provide an understanding of the evolution of quantum vulnerability research at hardware level and to highlight the need to implement security into the design of quantum computers from its early stages.