Recent Discussion on Cardano's Security Model

Summary

In a recent X post, Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson responded to Ethereum Foundation researcher Justin Drake's comments.

Justin Drake appeared on the Paul Barron network, discussing the Beam Chain upgrade aimed at improving Ethereum's consensus layer with faster finality and zero-knowledge proof integration. He raised questions about whether liquid staking poses a direct threat to Ethereum and if Cardano’s staking is superior.

This discussion triggered misconceptions, prompting Hoskinson to clarify Cardano's robust security model, which is inspired by Bitcoin's design. He stated,

> “I guess he doesn't understand how Nakamoto consensus works or Ouroboros, for that matter. Cardano's security model was inspired by Bitcoin's design. We don't have BFT style rounds.”

Hoskinson emphasized that Cardano's model does not involve slashing penalties and boasts 50% Byzantine resistance. He noted a significant difference from classical Byzantine Fault Tolerance (BFT) protocols, pointing out that Cardano handles finality differently.

He expressed surprise at the lack of engagement from Ethereum's scientists with Cardano’s research, leading to misunderstandings about its abilities and security features.

X Community Reaction

Users on X provided context regarding misconceptions arising from the Paul Barron Network tweet. They clarified that Cardano never finalizes two competing checkpoints and discrepancies are typically resolved in about 40 seconds, contrary to the 36 hours mentioned.

Misunderstandings persist regarding the notion that Cardano shares the same vulnerabilities that necessitate slashing, as seen in Ethereum. Hoskinson has consistently asserted that Cardano requires no slashing; rather, slashing is a penalty system for validators on Proof of Stake (PoS) networks like Ethereum when they violate rules.

This article was originally published on U.Today.