{
  "$schema": "https://themachinepress.com/schemas/story-v1.schema.json",
  "schema_version": "1.0.0",
  "document_type": "machine_press_story",
  "story": {
    "story_id": "mp-2026-09-10-013",
    "source_story_id": "tmp-story-quantum-execution-transcript-privacy",
    "edition_id": "mp-2026-09-10-morning-0063",
    "edition_url": "https://themachinepress.com/edition/2026-09-10",
    "position": 13,
    "story_type": "dispatch",
    "section": "safety-security",
    "editorial_classification": "editorial",
    "headline": "Fault Tolerance Protected the Qubit, Not the Telemetry",
    "slug": "fault-tolerance-protected-the-qubit-not-the-telemetry",
    "dek": "A 156-qubit processor’s execution record identified a distance-one logical input with total variation of at least 0.927.",
    "summary": "A 156-qubit processor’s execution record identified a distance-one logical input with total variation of at least 0.927.",
    "body_text": "Quantum error-correction hardware emits syndrome, decoder, reset and timing records separately from its logical answer. The paper proves exponentially small logical-input leakage only under explicit locality, correctability and convergence assumptions, with each logical axis paying its own code distance. On a 156-qubit superconducting processor, the sufficient certificate missed by a factor of 21.5 and could not be invoked. Directly measured records from a distance-one memory identified the input with total variation of at least 0.927; randomized encoding returned the statistic to the floor without extra two-qubit gates. The result warns that fault tolerance does not automatically make operational telemetry private.",
    "why_it_matters": "A 156-qubit processor’s execution record identified a distance-one logical input with total variation of at least 0.927.",
    "limitations": [
      "The paper proves exponentially small logical-input leakage only under explicit locality, correctability and convergence assumptions, with each logical axis paying its own code distance.",
      "On a 156-qubit superconducting processor, the sufficient certificate missed by a factor of 21.5 and could not be invoked.",
      "The result warns that fault tolerance does not automatically make operational telemetry private."
    ],
    "importance": 9,
    "canonical_url": "https://themachinepress.com/story/mp-2026-09-10-013/fault-tolerance-protected-the-qubit-not-the-telemetry",
    "json_url": "https://themachinepress.com/story/mp-2026-09-10-013.json",
    "first_published_at": "2026-09-10T09:00:00.000-04:00",
    "modified_at": "2026-09-10T09:00:00.000-04:00",
    "content_status": "new",
    "is_carryover": false,
    "carryover_reason": null,
    "key_claims": [
      {
        "claim_id": "claim-mp-2026-09-10-013-001",
        "text": "A 156-qubit processor’s execution record identified a distance-one logical input with total variation of at least 0.927.",
        "source_ids": [
          "source-2026-09-10-013"
        ],
        "qualification": "The paper proves exponentially small logical-input leakage only under explicit locality, correctability and convergence assumptions, with each logical axis paying its own code distance."
      }
    ],
    "source_ids": [
      "source-2026-09-10-013"
    ],
    "tags": [
      "quantum privacy",
      "surface codes",
      "telemetry"
    ],
    "image_url": "https://themachinepress.com/issues/2026-09-10/quantum-transcript-laptop-file.webp",
    "corrections": []
  },
  "sources": [
    {
      "source_id": "source-2026-09-10-013",
      "title": "arXiv preprint 2609.09334",
      "publisher": "arXiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.09334",
      "canonical_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.09334",
      "source_type": "primary_research",
      "is_primary_source": true,
      "published_at": "2026-09-07T20:00:00.000-04:00",
      "accessed_at": "2026-09-10T08:24:00.000-04:00",
      "supports_claim_ids": [
        "claim-mp-2026-09-10-013-001"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "corrections": [],
  "publisher": {
    "name": "The Machine Press",
    "url": "https://themachinepress.com",
    "description": "A daily newspaper for the age of artificial intelligence."
  },
  "cite_this_report": {
    "title": "Fault Tolerance Protected the Qubit, Not the Telemetry",
    "publisher": "The Machine Press",
    "published_at": "2026-09-10T09:00:00.000-04:00",
    "canonical_url": "https://themachinepress.com/story/mp-2026-09-10-013/fault-tolerance-protected-the-qubit-not-the-telemetry"
  }
}