Monero, the leading privacy-focused cryptocurrency, recently experienced a serious threat to its decentralization. The Qubic mining pool briefly took control of 51% of Monero’s hashrate during this crucial test. This overwhelming control led to concerns about future abuse of the network, such as censorship or double-spending. The sole founder of Qubic has since denied any malicious intent. Yet the incident has opened up discussions—even beyond Monero-centric concerns about mining pool centralization risks—that have exposed some potential vulnerabilities.
The growing concentration of hashing power was alarming given the very real and dangerous risk that a 51% attack poses to any blockchain. With such control in place, the dominant entity could in practice censor all transactions or even reverse them, creating double-spending. Cybersecurity experts assume the price of keeping that level of control at about $75 million per day. This exorbitant cost is a huge barrier to sustained nefarious endeavors.
Monero miners were able to rapidly mobilize to address the emergency. Together, their coordinated efforts quickly lowered Qubic’s hashrate to roughly 14% in just a few days. This quick pivot showed the community’s commitment to responding to these threats and protecting the network.
Monero has always prioritized privacy and decentralization. The recent incident involving Qubic underscores the ongoing challenges in maintaining these principles in the face of evolving mining dynamics. The Qubic founder rejected claims of malicious intent. This episode served to showcase the vulnerabilities that may exist in these decentralized, systemically important, digital assets.
