Author: Peter Todd 2013-04-29 16:28:39
Published on: 2013-04-29T16:28:39+00:00
Crypto Stick, an open source USB key for encryption and secure authentication, has been accepted as a mentor organization for Google Summer of Code (GSOC) 2013. One of the project ideas is to develop a physical BitCoin wallet according to https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Smart_card_wallet. However, hardware Bitcoin wallets should have some type of display so that the wallet itself can tell you where the coins it is signing are being sent. This implies support for the upcoming payment protocol so the wallet can also verify that the address is actually the address of the recipient the user is intending to send funds too. The current Crypto Stick hardware doesn't even have a button for user interaction. PGP smart cards and USB keys already have this problem but the consequences of signing the wrong document are usually less than the consequences of sending some or even all of the user's funds to a thief. A bad signature can usually be revoked after the fact with a follow-up message.Hardware security for private keys isn't a bad thing, but the protections are a lot more limited than users typically realize. Nonetheless, there is excitement that this implies that the Crypto Stick could have ECC key support in the future.
Updated on: 2023-06-06T15:58:07.454170+00:00