New Bitcoin Proposal Offers Alternative to Prove Control Over Vulnerable Keys

The threat of quantum computing to Bitcoin has long been intertwined with the enigma of Satoshi Nakamoto. Millions of bitcoins, including those attributed to Nakamoto, are at risk due to exposed public keys. A proposed soft fork, BIP-361, aims to phase out legacy addresses, but this would require dormant holders like Satoshi to publicly move their assets or risk losing them. Dan Robinson of Paradigm has introduced an alternative, Provable Address-Control Timestamps (PACTs), allowing holders to timestamp proof of ownership without revealing their identity. This involves generating a unique cryptographic commitment and timestamping it on the blockchain. If a soft fork freezes vulnerable coins, holders can later submit a zero-knowledge proof to redeem their assets without revealing sensitive information. PACTs address a gap in BIP-361 and provide a potential rescue path for wallets derived through BIP-32. However, implementing PACTs would require substantial infrastructure changes, including the adoption of a STARK verification protocol. Ultimately, PACTs offer a way to balance protection against quantum theft with respect for dormant property rights, but their effectiveness depends on the cooperation of holders like Satoshi.