Monero, a popular privacy-centered crypto platform started in 2014, is going through a significant security challenge posed by Qubic, a decentralized blockchain L1 network. As per Charles Guillemet, the Chief Technology Officer of Ledger, the Qubic mining pool has recently gained a substantial 52.72% dominance over the cumulative network hashrate of Monero briefly. As Charles Guillemet discussed on social media, this control denotes a 51% attack, raising significant concerns. A 51% attack takes place when a group or single entity commands more than half of the computational power of a blockchain.
Qubic Launches 51% Attack on Monero, Raising Debate over Blockchain Security
With control over 52.72% of Monero’s hashrate, Qubic is in a position to influence it to a significant extent with the “51% attack.” In this respect, the respective dominance permits the attacker to restructure the blockchain, likely censor transfers, and even double-spend Monero’s coins. The hashrate spike of Qubic, which has touched 3.01 GH/s, occurred as included in a scheduled stress test to take place between the 2nd and 31st of August.
Additionally, the purpose of the event is to benefit miners with rewards in both $XMR and $QUBIC tokens. Hence, the project has gained considerable attention from the miners working in other pools. The $XMR-based rewards are transformed into stablecoins to be further converted into $QUBIC. This creates a self-sustaining cycle to back the hashrate dominance of the network. The respective strategy has permitted Qubic to outpace its former 45% dominance, touching 52.72% for a short time.
Chances of Monero’s Survival Decrease Amid Growing Takeover Fears
According to Charles Guillemet, sustaining the respective attack is anticipated to cost approximately $75M per day. Although likely lucrative, it could destroy confidence in the network in no time. Simultaneously, the other miners have no incentive to move forward. Keeping this in view, Qubic has the potential to orphan the competing blocks to efficiently become the sole miner. Moreover, a market-cap chain of $300M is controlling a $6 billion one. Furthermore, Monero is left with considerably fewer options for its recovery. Additionally, the fear is also growing regarding a complete takeover in the near term if the trend continues.
