On a recent email from Electroneum Ltd., some things come up; one of the most interesting thing I would say is the concept of Proof of Responsibility. And as usual, Ells explains it very well.
Super exciting news! We’ve just undertaken a successful fork to an improved blockchain model that we have developed called Proof of Responsibility. This model brings a new level of confidence, security and scalability required to achieve mass adoption.
We have developed our blockchain to:
- Become one of the few cryptocurrencies that is insusceptible to 51% attack
- Reduce our block reward (new coin emission) by 75%
- Increase scalability, confidence and commercial viability
- Speed up on-chain transactions
- Involve relevant and influential Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in the Electroneum project.
With this development we have engineered two new blockchain processes; Proof of Responsibility and Moderated blockchain. Delivering all the benefits of decentralisation whilst adding new layers of protection.
(A 17 minute video version with even more detail is available here: https://youtu.be/OuhHKFRiuzw)
IMPORTANT
If you run a full node (i.e. if you are a technical user or an exchange) you need to ensure you download and use the latest software from our Github library (https://github.com/electroneum/electroneum).
If you are a mobile user – no action is required.
Proof of Responsibility
We have moved from Proof of Work (used by the majority of cryptocurrencies) to a new way of mining Electroneum that we call Proof of Responsibility. It is a decentralised network layer that is run by responsible global organisations operating in the developing world that have been qualified to participate. This achieves a number of things:
- It means that the NGOs get the block reward and they will use it to help the same target people in the countries we are empowering with ETN this year.
- A huge increase in the security of the ETN network via our highly trusted nodes makes us insusceptible to a 51% attack on our network.
- Radically reduces power consumption of the Electroneum blockchain making it more environmentally friendly than most other cryptocurrencies. Our new blockchain runs on ONE MILLIONTH of the electricity that it took before!
- It educates NGOs about the Electroneum project and furthers the legitimacy of all cryptocurrencies by making them valuable to influential organisations.
75% Block Reward Reduction
Each ETN block that gets added to the blockchain releases a block reward. This reward has been reduced by 75%. We had a very large block reward when we launched to encourage hashing power, but we no longer need that enormous hashing power as we’ve launched our new Proof of Responsibility Blockchain. This reduction in output increases the length of time that the block reward lasts for (like Bitcoin, ETN has a finite maximum supply). The remaining 25% of the block reward goes to the new miners on our decentralised layer (see below).
Moderated Blockchain (Additional Security via Highly Trusted Nodes)
We’ve changed the way our blockchain operates to hugely increase the security. We have created a new blockchain model called Moderated Blockchain.
Our moderated blockchain operates two layers:
Layer One: A decentralised layer where our trusted miners operate their mining servers and handle the ETN transactions.
Layer Two: A second layer of highly trusted nodes is operated by us (Electroneum) as a company.
People already trust Electroneum as a brand, they trust us with the instant payment system, the custodial wallet app system and with the KYC/AML system. This blockchain update utilises that trust to add a new layer of highly trusted nodes to the blockchain.
These highly trusted nodes passively monitor the blockchain for unusual or damaging activity and have the power to shut down that activity in seconds.
