F2Pool is actively attacking the network RIGHT NOW. All it takes is one attacker to send them a single instance of CSAM, and Bitcoin users will have to knowingly and intentionally receive, store, and distribute it until the end of time. This will permanently impact Bitcoin adoption regardless of whether governments turn a blind eye or prosecute. If miners are going to switch pools when they do bad things, NOW IS THE TIME. I don't care if you switch to Foundry or even Antpool. Obviously I would prefer you make your own blocks and use OCEAN, but this is too critical and time-sensitive to be picky. We can work on mining decentralization and spam issues over a longer period of time, but CSAM is an insta-kill we MUST avoid.

Why do all nostr relays block VPNs?

Some people seem to want to argue that there is already CSAM in Bitcoin's blockchain. This is false. Bitcoin today does not support images at all - only arbitrary data up to 80 bytes (or 95 in the coinbase). Exploits like "Inscriptions" work by _misinterpreting_ script code, and _bypassing_ existing policy rules. They are not actually storing images, but merely putting gibberish code on the chain, which they later themselves (not Bitcoin) _misinterpret_ as images. This distinction is very real and relevant. If you don't differentiate between "data that can be misinterpreted to produce CSAM" and "data that correctly interpreted displays CSAM", then literally _all data_ is CSAM, with _no exceptions at all_. This tweet would be CSAM. Google's logo would be CSAM. Your phone's operating system would be CSAM. Literally anything _can_ be misinterpreted as CSAM.

Nobody is actually against Bitcoin having spam filters. Fees are just another filter, not fundamentally any different from any other filter. Even Core is adding _new_ filters: TRUC and ephemeral dust are two recent examples (mandatory in Core, and optional in Knots). They're just against _you_ having a say in what filters you get to use. They want to dictate that you use the filters _they_ choose. Instead of decentralized policy, they want a centralized policy. (And they're not even choosing sane ones! Who in their right mind wants to relay CSAM???)

For years, there has been FUD that Bitcoin's blockchain could be criminalised by storing CSAM on it. For years, the answer has always been that Bitcoin doesn't support data storage, and the offending content is not the blockchain itself, but the additional software used to transform the blockchain into CSAM. By sanctioning data storage, Core 30 is eliminating that argument. There will no longer be any additional software required, your Bitcoin node itself will provide CSAM on demand, using a well-defined and officially supported format. The very reason "CSAM on the chain" was FUD, is being _destroyed_ by Core 30. They are making it a _true_ accusation. No amount of obfuscation will change this fact. This is not the _only_ reason to reject Core 30. But even if it was, it would _still_ be strong reason to do so.

Now for the purely hypothetical: this is only one step away from also displaying the transaction to the recipient, tricking him into thinking he received it. The only thing standing in the way of this on the receiver end is if he is using his own full node! What happens on a Bitcoin standard, if 80% of the merchants aren't using full nodes and are tricked into accepting fake payments like this? View quoted note →

PSA: There is a supply chain attack on Bitcoin wallets going on. HARDWARE WALLETS AND SIGNAL MAY BE AFFECTED. READ FURTHER. I have not studied the full scope of this attack yet, but from what I hear, it can impact websites/webapps (including "local" webapps like Signal Desktop) and cause them to display a thief's address instead of the intended one. This means hardware wallets will correctly display the actual send-to address, but you the human may compare the address to one that has already been replaced! Regardless of what wallet you use, verify the address you are sending to without trusting a computer. Call your recipient and verify verbally.

Bitcoin is not a finished product. We may be on a detour to address spam, and part of the crisis did originate with (mishandling of) the Segwit and Taproot upgrades - but to improve the world, we still need more functionality. Stopping all improvements forever ("ossifying") is fatal. Part of addressing the issues with Core needs to be ensuring we don't repeat the same mistakes: if an upgrade introduces unforeseen vulnerabilities, those need to get addressed in a timely manner. All protocol changes require support from the entire community, so we developers are going to have to earn that reputation back. There are fairly simple, low-risk softforks like CTV, or even a consensus cleanup (though I have reservations about BIP 54), that should not introduce vulnerabilities, and could be a starting point to regain confidence after Core is out of the picture. The next step up is probably native zero-knowledge support, BitVM optimisations, and similar. This is when it *might* make sense to start considering Bitcoin L1 "complete", and capable of handling further improvements and even scaling on true trustless sidechains. We have a long road to get there still, and every step will take consensus - possibly quick mitigation of unforeseen outcomes - but we shouldn't lose sight of the end goal: a decentralised currency that nobody can undermine, and hopefully one day onboard the entire global economy. It's possible to accomplish, but we will have to work for it.

Node policies work. This is the one miner who is actively trying to undermine the p2p relay network with Slipstream, and even they had to stop accepting subsat transactions out of risk of losing blocks because the nodes' relay policy doesn't accept them. **CORE 29.1 IS CHANGING THAT THIS MONTH**

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Portland.HODL (@PortlandHODL) on X

@MrHodl @reardencode @francispouliot_ MARA stopped because the additional risk of an orphan block costing 3.125 BTC is higher than the amount we wo...

Be careful out there... The bad actors are now attacking individual Knots nodes. If you have data limits, pay a visit to the maxuploadtarget option (in the GUI under Options -> Network tab -> Try to keep upload traffic under ____ MiB per day - only in Knots)

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nazgul 🏴‍☠️ (@BTCnazgul) on X