Cybersecurity expert and researcher Justin Drake warned Bitcoin owners of an impending disaster.
Drake called the current consensus protocol 'proof of work' (PoW) in the BTC network a 'ticking time bomb'. In his opinion, it will soon explode due to the low level of blockchain security, caused by a modest budget due to falling miner revenues.
Recently, they earn less than 10 bitcoins worth $1 million at the current exchange rate per day in fees, which has turned out to be the lowest figure in the past nine years. Additionally, due to the halving that occurred in April 2024, the reward for adding blocks has been halved to 6.25 BTC.
Changing the transaction processing fee in the Bitcoin network
Justin claims that today the security of cryptocurrency blockchain is ensured by equipment with a capacity of 20 gigawatts. The infrastructure, which includes the data centers and miners with a capacity of 1 gigawatt, costs $1 billion; accordingly, to carry out a 51% attack, $10.2 billion will be required. However, as Drake claims, for a permanent attack, infrastructure with a capacity of 20 gigawatts will be needed, thus the costs will reach $20 billion.
Currently, the market capitalization of Bitcoin is $2.11 trillion, meaning the security of the asset is ensured by equipment amounting to only 0.95% of the value of coins in circulation. As the cryptocurrency price rises, this figure will only decrease because miners have no ability to increase coin production due to the lack of revenue growth. In this regard, Justin believes that executing a 51% attack on the BTC network is just a matter of time.
