Bitcoin War: The First Real Threat to Bitcoin?
For most Bitcoiners, it is a well known fact that there is a significant risk in the decentralized peer-to-peer currency pertaining to hashing power. In order to maintain a perfectly democratic internet currency, no one single entity should ever have control of 51%, or greater, of the total network hashing power.
Today, one of our researchers discovered that according to Blockchain.INFO, a miner at 85.214.124.168 currently has approximately 15% of the total hashing power. This, in itself, is every day news. However, the strange or even frightening fact is that it is producing empty blocks (single transaction blocks). If this 15% turned into 51%, it could have the potential to kill bitcoin. Why are they doing this? There are a few possible reasons:
1. The entity may have discovered a method for increasing mining ROI, and essentially, is earning its 50 bitcoins per block much more quickly than others. In general when finding a block, hashes for every transaction must be computed. When computing 1 transaction per block versus 100, you can imagine the latter would be more costly than the former. However, this means that the entity would not receive any fees for processing transactions. It is difficult, at the current time, to determine whether this would be beneficial.
2. The entity is willing to blow money on mining these empty blocks. Essentially, this could lead to a complete stop in bitcoin transaction processing. If the entity obtains 51% of hashing power and fully stops processing transactions while mining against only its own blocks, the block chain will become useless. Some people who might do this include governments, banks, competing currencies, or ridiculously wealthy and bored individuals who have a vendetta against bitcoin.
3. This could also be a botnet that does not wish to deal with the hassle of constantly sending all of the current transaction information to its zombies. This would be more for coding simplicity rather than for financial gain.
As of today, there is still very little risk. Additionally, assuming this entity falls under the #1 listed above (i.e., not entirely malicious), the worst thing that will happen is that bitcoin transaction confirmations will be slowed down by whatever percent of hashing power they are “contributing,” and Jerry McGuire will yell “SHOW ME THE MONEY!”
So what is it? Is this entity generously increasing their ROI, or is it attacking and taking over? With the recent security advisories and, of course, the widely publicized hacks, it looks like the WWW (Wild Wild West) is in full effect.
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69 Comments
I’ll be that “Fusion Center” in Utah is behind it. The huge database is supposed to contain millions (yes millions) of computers underground which supposedly store data on you and me… but who knows, they could easily use those to mine. It’s the NWO bankers gone mad!!
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they have no parents, so we are creating a new way to help via internet and promoting bitcoins,
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Sure you are and I am stocking up the tooth fairy with lots of bitcoins to put under the pillows of children.
i love how people say 51% because it’s too annoying to say 50.000000000000000000000…1
or
> 50%
or
more than 50%
all it is is simple majority. it is not 51%
it’s over 9000!!!
Hey, what happens to bitcoin when the net dies?
same thing that happens to banks when the net dies.
What is the date of this article please? I just came upon it and yet it has no date.
You can bet the Rothschild Global Central Bankers (who work for the Jesuit global trusts) do not want this currency to succeed, and will do everything in their power and considerable wealth to crash it or cause it to become invalidated. They have openly stated throughout history they do not like competition, sinking the Titanic (actually the Olympia) to rid some of their foes (do you homework). That is just one of hundreds of examples. If world wars, etc. are not beyond their means to secure their dominance, what makes you think they wouldn’t attempt to game this system? Bitcoin represents their worst nightmare.
I think the bitcoin community needs to learn from this instance and develop a new game – bitcoin v.2, that anticipates even this type of attempt.
PS – A birdie told me this scenario is highly probably true, I’ll leave you all to ponder any of this.