Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin declared that the blockchain ecosystem is already prepared to confront potential quantum attacks through a “recovery fork.” In a recent blog post, Buterin shared insights on the possible availability of quantum computers in the near future, which poses potential risks as hackers would have access to the devices.
While such a scenario poses the risk of users losing their funds through unauthorized access and exploits, Buterin asserted that Ethereum is immune to it. He stated, “I argue that actually, we are already well-positioned to make a pretty simple recovery fork to deal with such a situation.”
Colin Wu, a Chinese crypto researcher, recently shared an X post on his Wu Blockchain page, shedding light on Buterin’s insights. He highlighted that the infrastructure for such a hard fork implementation could be begun immediately, “making the Ethereum ecosystem maximally ready in case a quantum emergency does actually come to pass.”
Vitalik: If quantum computers are available, and bad actors are able to use them to steal users’ funds. The blockchain would have to hard fork and users would have to download new wallet software, but few users would lose their funds. The infrastructure to implement a hard fork…
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) March 10, 2024
As per the post, during the blockchain’s hard fork event, the backup plan could be implemented while the users need to download a new software wallet. However, Buterin added that there is a possibility that a few users will lose their funds.
Buterin detailed the procedures involved in the proposed hard fork. When a large-scale theft is detected, users are recommended to “revert all blocks after the first block.” Then, traditional EOA-based transactions should be disabled.
The next step includes adding a new transaction type, allowing smart contract wallet transactions. Finally, new transaction types or opcodes are added to allow for STARK proofs. If the proof is successful, the account code will switch to a new verification code, permitting the users to use it as a smart contract wallet.
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