At the 2024 Rare Evo event, Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson announced a $1 million hack challenge, inviting the cybersecurity community to test the security of the newly released Lace Paper Wallet. This initiative aims to prove the wallet’s robustness by rewarding anyone who can successfully breach its defenses.
$1 Million Bounty for Breaching Lace Paper Wallet
In collaboration with Moneta USDM, Hoskinson revealed that $1 million worth of USDM is stored in the Lace Paper Wallet. The challenge, which runs until the end of the year, offers this bounty to anyone who can bypass the wallet’s advanced encryption.
Lace Paper Wallet, developed on Cardano’s Lace platform, features both public and private QR codes. The private key is secured with PGP encryption, similar to that used in encrypted emails, which significantly enhances its security.
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Addressing common vulnerabilities of standard paper wallets, Hoskinson highlighted the issue of replay attacks, where a printer might create a duplicate wallet by reproducing a previously printed key. To counter this, the Lace Paper Wallet incorporates PGP encryption, ensuring that even if a duplicate wallet is made, unauthorized users cannot access it.
Moreover, the wallet allows users to securely store their private keys on devices like YubiKeys and even save the wallet as a PDF for digital storage. Hoskinson described these features as breakthroughs in paper wallet security, aiming to set a new standard in the industry.
BitBoy’s Challenge to Cardano founder
In an unexpected twist, crypto personality Ben “BitBoy” Armstrong publicly challenged Hoskinson to a physical fight shortly before the bounty announcement. This challenge followed Hoskinson’s remarks about Armstrong’s critical stance on Cardano.
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However, despite the heated exchange, BitBoy clarified that there was no bad blood between them, framing the challenge as more entertainment than a serious confrontation.
By integrating these advanced security measures and issuing a bold challenge to the cybersecurity community, Hoskinson aims to validate the Lace Paper Wallet’s security and raise the bar for wallet encryption.
