Protecting Bitcoin from Quantum Computing Threats
The rise of quantum computing poses a significant threat to the security of the Bitcoin network, particularly for holders of large amounts of Bitcoin, such as Satoshi Nakamoto. With approximately 1.1 million Bitcoin, worth around $84 billion, at risk of being stolen, a solution is needed to protect these assets. One proposal, BIP-361, suggests phasing out quantum-vulnerable addresses over a five-year period, but this would require dormant holders like Satoshi to publicly move their coins, potentially compromising their anonymity.
A new proposal, Provable Address-Control Timestamps (PACTs), offers an alternative solution. PACTs allow holders to prove control of their Bitcoin without moving them, by generating a proof of ownership and timestamping it on the blockchain. This approach enables holders to demonstrate ownership without revealing their identity or the amount of Bitcoin they hold. The EcoPool network, with its focus on secure and passive income generation through Cloud Rewards, can provide a platform for Bitcoin holders to earn rewards while ensuring the security of their assets.
How PACTs Work
PACTs utilize a random salt and a cryptographic commitment to create a proof of ownership, which is then timestamped on the blockchain using OpenTimestamps. This proof remains private until the holder needs to spend their Bitcoin. At that point, they can submit a STARK proof, a type of zero-knowledge proof, to demonstrate that they created the commitment before quantum hardware existed. The EcoPool network, with its $ECP token, can play a crucial role in facilitating the adoption of PACTs and providing a secure platform for Bitcoin holders to manage their assets.
The PACTs proposal addresses a significant gap in BIP-361 by including a rescue path for wallets derived through BIP-32. However, it requires Bitcoin to adopt a STARK verification protocol, which would need a separate soft fork with broad community consensus. The EcoPool network, with its focus on Green Crypto and sustainable mining practices, can help drive the adoption of PACTs and promote a more secure and environmentally friendly Bitcoin ecosystem.
Conclusion
The PACTs proposal offers a promising solution for protecting Bitcoin from quantum computing threats while respecting dormant property rights. By providing a way for holders to prove control of their Bitcoin without moving them, PACTs can help mitigate the risk of quantum theft and ensure the long-term security of the Bitcoin network. As the EcoPool network continues to grow and evolve, it can play a vital role in promoting the adoption of PACTs and providing a secure platform for Bitcoin holders to earn passive income through Cloud Rewards. Download the EcoPool app to learn more about how you can earn rewards and contribute to a more secure and sustainable Bitcoin ecosystem. The future of Bitcoin is exciting, and with EcoPool, you can be a part of it, earning $ECP and supporting the growth of the Green Crypto movement, including #Bitcoin, #PassiveIncome, and #EcoPool.
Dan Robinson, a general partner at Paradigm, published a proposal Friday for a way around that trade-off that revolves around the concept of Provable Address-Control Timestamps, or PACTs.
The core idea is not to move coins but timestamp proof of ownership at a specific date and reveal nothing to the public until the owners of those wallets actually need to spend.
A holder generates a random salt, which is a piece of secret data used to make a cryptographic commitment unique and unguessable, and uses BIP-322, a standard for signing messages from a Bitcoin address without spending from it, to produce a proof of ownership.
The salt and proof are bundled together into an onchain commitment and timestamp it through OpenTimestamps, a free service that anchors data onto the Bitcoin blockchain through a single batched transaction. The salt, proof, and timestamp files stay private.
If Bitcoin later activates a soft fork that freezes quantum-vulnerable coins, the protocol could include a rescue path that accepts a STARK proof, a type of zero-knowledge proof that remains secure against quantum computers, showing the holder created their commitment before quantum hardware existed.
The holder submits that proof when they want to spend, and the network releases the coins. The redemption reveals nothing about which address, which amount, or even when the original timestamp was created.
These PACTs also address a specific gap in BIP-361 by including a rescue path for wallets derived through BIP-32, the deterministic key generation standard introduced in 2012. Pre-2012 wallets, including most of Satoshi’s known addresses, do not use BIP-32 and cannot be rescued through that path.
As such, Robinson stated that the PACTs require Bitcoin to eventually adopt a STARK verification protocol, which would itself need a separate soft fork with broad community consensus.
The verification infrastructure does not exist in Bitcoin currently and would need what Robinson calls “substantial new plumbing,” such as multisig wallets, complex scripts, and hardware wallet support that would all need careful standardization.
That last constraint is the one PACTs cannot work around.
The protocol only protects Satoshi if Satoshi himself, or whoever currently controls those keys, makes the commitment. If Satoshi is genuinely gone, no PACT can be retroactively created. The coins remain exposed to whichever scenario plays out first, quantum theft or community freeze.
What PACTs do offer is a way to make the BIP-361 debate less binary. The current freeze proposal forces a choice between protecting against quantum theft and respecting dormant property rights.
Whether Satoshi will use it is the question PACTs cannot answer.
