A lot of cryptocurrency enthusiasts have high hopes for the MimbleWimble protocol. It would unlock additional privacy features, not just for Grin, but other coins implementing this technology in the future.
In a recent post by Ivan Gobatyy, however, it becomes apparent there are some key flaws associated with the privacy aspect of this technology.
MimbleWimble has a Privacy Problem
He explains how it is possible to uncover the addresses of senders and recipients of the Grin currency in real-time.
What is even more astounding is how it would only cost $60 per week through Amazon Web Services to obtain this type of information.
For users of Grin, this is something to genuinely be worried about at this time.
The big question is whether the problem can be fixed through conventional means or not. So far, it seems that this will not be the case.
It is not the first time MimbleWimble comes under fire regarding its implementation of privacy.
Researchers floated the idea of a potential major weakness for some time now, and those suspicions have now been confirmed.
What is interesting is how there are limitations as to how this specific attack vector works exactly.
While it introduces the linkability of transactions and addresses, it doesn’t give people insights into the actual transaction amounts.
This news comes at a time during which the overall demand for more privacy with Bitcoin is on the rise once again.
It is now up to the developers of Bitcoin to consider whether or not they want to implement MimbleWimble at some point.
For Grin, this attack is not necessarily earth shattering, but it will spark some debates regardless.
