Author: Tier Nolan 2015-12-20 11:38:34
Published on: 2015-12-20T11:38:34+00:00
In an email conversation between Emin Gün Sirer and other individuals, the topic of block withholding attacks on mining pools was discussed. It was suggested that if mining protocols were updated so that miners had to indicate their identity and pools had to include their domain name in the block header, then this could prevent such attacks. A pool which provided this service would be publicly stating that they do not engage in block withholding attacks, and any two pools doing it cannot attack each other as they have different domain names. There would be an incentive for pools to start supporting this feature and owners of hashing power could ensure they receive a payout from any blocks found. Mining hosts could also provide proof that they performed mining, including the identity of the mining pool, making it more difficult to redirect mining power. However, mining power directly owned by the pool is immune to this effect.
Updated on: 2023-06-11T02:34:04.189266+00:00