Post-quantum encryption candidate eliminated after cryptographic attack

The Mythos attack broke ML-KEM (formerly Kyber), one of NIST's finalists for post-quantum cryptography standardization, before widespread deployment. The vulnerability exposes a gap in the vetting process: even algorithms that survived years of peer review can fail under sustained cryptanalytic pressure. NIST is now accelerating its review of alternative algorithms as organizations plan PQC migrations. The practical question is whether standardization timelines account for the lag between cryptanalytic discovery and infrastructure replacement.