Author: ZmnSCPxj 2020-12-01 12:11:14
Published on: 2020-12-01T12:11:14+00:00
The Lightning Network faces two types of griefing attacks - loop attacks and accidental "attacks". Loop attacks do not necessarily involve loops but require the start and end of a payment to be controlled by the same entity. Such entities can run multiple nodes on the network, making it difficult to prevent these kinds of attacks. One solution is stake certificates that make nodes expensive enough to prevent single entities from running multiple nodes. However, if channels themselves are expensive, then nodes with channels become expensive too.The point-to-point property already present in the existing Lightning Network is sufficient to prevent loop attacks. Hence, it might be better to focus on mitigating the effects of incompetence-based non-attacks rather than attempting to defend against loop attacks. This proposal suggests mitigating such effects through proper handling of HTLC timeouts.
Updated on: 2023-06-03T03:00:37.015820+00:00