Author: David A. Harding 2020-04-23 09:59:57
Published on: 2020-04-23T09:59:57+00:00
In an email thread discussing the recent double-spend exploit on Bitcoin, Matt Corallo suggests that even if transactions are sent only to miner nodes, a double-spend attack could still be executed by bribing miners for information not available to the network in general. Corallo proposes a solution where a user can bribe miners with a confirmed UTXO and a scriptPubKey that requires the preimage of an SHA256 hash to be included in a child transaction. The user can also create a bribe via Lightning Network, allowing smaller miners with LN nodes an equal chance of claiming the probe-bribe as larger miners, and allowing non-miners to profit from learning the preimage from miners. Corallo acknowledges that this proposed solution would require people to run additional software to keep track of potential preimages and compare them to hash candidates, as well as additional complexity in LN clients. However, he wonders if this problem can be largely addressed in the same general way as watchtowers and other enforcement-assistance services. The proposed solution requires a change to standard relay and mining policy and is outlined in detail in the email thread.
Updated on: 2023-06-14T00:33:20.263832+00:00