Midnight CTO Talk About Private Proof of Stake as AI dey Raise Security Wahala

Midnight Foundation Chief Technology Officer Sebastien Guillemot don highlight private proof of stake as security matter for dis AI era, as e argue say if people fit identify token holders and block producers, attackers go fit target dem more easily.

For one October 31 post, Guillemot still point to Cardano way of doing block production. E explain say di network don already give small protection because observers no fit know ahead of time which stake pool go produce block.

Why Guillemot Raise Private Proof of Stake

Proof of stake na method wey blockchain networks dey use select participants wey fit produce blocks and help maintain di ledger. Depending on di network, token holders fit delegate their stake to operators wey dey run di required infrastructure.

Guillemot comments focus on di information wey dey available about those participants. For public blockchain, addresses and stake distributions fit dey visible, and other information fit connect one address or operator to person or organization.

Im concern be say dis kind visibility fit help attackers identify potential targets. For example, operator fit face attempt to steal credentials or gain access to infrastructure wey dem dey use for block production. Guillemot connect di broad risk to how AI dey become more important, even though im no describe specific attack for im post.

Private proof of stake na research area wey dey explore how network fit verify participation while e still limit wetin dem reveal about participants or their stake. Di exact information wey dem protect go depend on di design of each protocol.

Wetin Cardano Don Already Protect

For Cardano, stake pool fit determine locally whether dem select am to produce block. Di rest of di network fit verify di selection when di pool publish di block with im cryptographic proof.

Dis mean say outside observer no fit determine ahead of time who dem select to produce block just by looking public schedule. Guillemot cite dis property as example of privacy protection wey don already dey available for proof of stake network, and e still argue say extra improvements fit help protect networks.

Di difference clear: to hide block producer selection before publication no mean say Cardano entire stake distribution or all pool activity don private.

Research don explore how to push privacy go further. Di 2019 Ouroboros Crypsinous paper present one privacy-preserving proof of stake protocol wey dey use cryptographic techniques, including zero-knowledge proofs, to help prove eligibility without exposing di underlying private information.

Di authors still analyze security against adaptive attacks, where adversary fit choose who to compromise as di protocol dey run. Crypsinous na research design and Guillemot no present am for im post as activated Cardano or Midnight upgrade.

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Midnight Staking Roadmap and Private PoS Research

Midnight dey use zero-knowledge technology for applications wey fit verify information while dem protect selected details. Dat application-level privacy different from to hide who dey participate for consensus or how much stake dem control.

Charles Hoskinson don earlier identify private proof of stake as protocol wey im dey work on as im dey discuss development priorities for Midnight. E describe approach wey go pass through research, specification, simulation and implementation.

Guillemot post no include design or launch date for private proof of stake for Midnight. Separately, Midnight published roadmap target NIGHT staking and community block production in the first quarter of 2027, with Cardano stake pool operators expected to fit join as block producers.