2014/02/09 by Meni Rosenfeld, Rosenfeld, Meni · 4 citations
Computer Science · #Blockchain Technology Applications and Security #Cryptography and Security (cs.CR) #FOS: Computer and information sciences #cs.CR
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1402.2009
13 pages
arxiv created 2014/02/09 · openalex publication_date 2014/02/09 · arxiv updated 2014/02/12 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Bitcoin is the world's first decentralized digital currency. Its main technical innovation is the use of a blockchain and hash-based proof of work to synchronize transactions and prevent double-spending the currency. While the qualitative nature of this system is well understood, there is widespread confusion about its quantitative aspects and how they relate to attack vectors and their countermeasures. In this paper we take a look at the stochastic processes underlying typical attacks and their resulting probabilities of success.