Published on: 2021-08-12T22:08:40+00:00
The safety of Taproot, a proposed upgrade to Bitcoin's software, has been a topic of discussion on the bitcoin-dev mailing list. Some individuals have expressed concerns about the vulnerability of Taproot to quantum computing attacks. They argue that Taproot lacks an important safety protection against quantum computers. However, others believe that there is no significant difference in terms of Bitcoin's vulnerability to quantum computing before and after Taproot.Address reuse has also been brought up as a factor in the debate. While hash-based addresses are recommended to reduce the risk of address reuse, many people still reuse Bitcoin invoice addresses. It has been pointed out that 37% of the supply is at risk of quantum attack due to this practice.Developer Mark Friedenbach is particularly concerned about Taproot's vulnerability to quantum computers. He suggests that without Taproot, the network could "pause" while a full quantum-safe solution is developed. However, with Taproot, it could become an unrecoverable situation if quantum computers come online before a solution is implemented. Friedenbach argues that Taproot does not provide any additional benefits, as the features it proposes can be implemented using hashed keys instead of raw keys. Despite these concerns, Friedenbach believes that Taproot should not be rejected and suggests adding a hash on top in an additional softfork to address the safety issue.In response to the argument that 37% of the supply being at risk is a security concern, Friedenbach suggests that social efforts discouraging address reuse can improve the situation. He also mentions that when neglected or abandoned/lost coins are compromised by quantum computers, it can be seen as equivalent to Bitcoin mining. Therefore, he argues that 37% of the supply minable by quantum computers is no different than 37% minable by ASICs.Despite the concerns raised, Taproot has entered the activation phase, and it is expected that the software will be released in the next month or two. Friedenbach recommends that anyone using Bitcoin read his article and other arguments on the topic to decide if this is a concern for them, and encourages them to make their own posts accordingly.Overall, the discussions revolve around the potential risks and mitigations related to quantum computing and Taproot in the Bitcoin ecosystem. The community is actively addressing these challenges and working towards ensuring the security and resilience of the network.
Updated on: 2023-08-02T03:25:39.708542+00:00