Monero successfully underwent the CNv4 fork on March 9, 2019

The hard fork brings stronger resistance, security, and privacy to the network

XMR currently trades at $50.56

Privacy –centered cryptocurrency Monero (XMR) successfully underwent a scheduled hard fork on March 9, 2019. This hard fork brings with an array of benefits to Monero including increased resistance to ASIC mining and big bang attacks.

Blockchain Reporter informed its audience on February 12, 2019, that Monero is preparing itself to undergo a scheduled protocol update slated to happen on March 9, 2019.

The hard fork called the CNv4 fork successfully took place at block height 1788000. More than advancement for the Monero system, the protocol update took place to mitigate the threat of unauthorized mining posed by ASICs chips used in mining rigs.

Monero developers went on record to state that ASICs chips have brought with them a new chasm to the cryptocurrency which requires immediate attention.

Changes Brought About by the Upgrade

Instead of substantiating on the hundreds of small and technical updates brought about by the hard fork we will focus on some of the most prominent ones.

First and foremost, the upgrade has slightly changed Monero’s Proof-of-Work algorithm named Cryptonight-R to prohibit the current ASICs from engaging in the network. This tweak will further bolster Monero’s resistance against ASICs. Miners who wish to continue mining XMR are required to update their software.

The upgrade also makes Monero immune to big bang attacks. Per Dr. Mitchell Krawiec-Thayer, founder of Noncesense Research Lab, blockchain big-bang attacks can occur when a network attacker spamming transactions could cause an “Exponential increase in [the computer] resource requirements… that would exceed the capacities of the extant Monero infrastructure on the scale of hours.”

To understand the problem of big-bang attack plaguing the Monero network, one needs to consider the network’s current block-size limit. At present, the block-size of XMR is set at the median of the last 100 blocks. However, given the fact that Monero’s block-time is two minutes, an increased amount of stress on the network could, in reality, increase the block size exponentially.

It is estimated that due to the aforementioned fallacy, the block-size could become as large as 10 TB. Thayer added that a block-size of 10 TB could shut down almost all full nodes from the network. The March 9 hard fork addresses this menace and shields Monero from such attacks in the future.

Lastly, the upgrade also makes the privacy of XMR transactions more foolproof with the introduction of dummy encrypted data to each transaction. This extra layer of data would make it even more difficult for DLT analytics firms to determine the source and destination of XMR payments.

Note for Miners and Users

As the protocol upgrade is deemed a “hard fork,” Monero miners the world over should consider upgrading their mining software. Further, XMR holders should also upgrade their Monero wallets to the latest version to remain functional.

At press time, the price of Monero sits at $50.56 with a total market cap of $851 million and 24-hour trading volume of $61million.