Mudit Gupta from Polygon stated that security measures in the crypto field are taken quickly in theory, but lag far behind in practice in terms of security.
Securing Crypto is Challenging!
According to Mudit Gupta, Chief Information Security Officer of Polygon, private or mnemonic keys offer many advantages for security, but also pose many challenges. Speaking at the Ethereum Community Conference (EthCC) held on July 17, Gupta discussed the differences between theoretical security and practical security in the blockchain and crypto field. Gupta stated that when it comes to theoretical security, the field works very fast. However, the Polygon manager believes that the field is far behind in terms of practical security. For example, the manager explained that keeping private keys secure is more difficult than passwords because they can be changed once leaked, with the following words;
“A mnemonic is a one-time thing. Once you have it, if you make a mistake or it gets leaked, your job is done. That’s why keeping your mnemonic or private key secure is a much more difficult problem.”
Billions of Dollars Lost!
According to Gupta, at least a few billion dollars have been lost due to people losing their mnemonic keys. Gupta stated that much more is at risk due to inadequate security and that there are billions of dollars wrongly secured in users’ wallets. Gupta also mentioned that private keys are theoretically 100% secure.
“What if you die for any reason? How can your loved ones access your funds? So, it’s a hard problem to solve. What if your key is compromised for any reason?” he clarified the situation with these words.
The manager also discussed the challenges of protecting against attacks in the security world. According to Gupta, hackers have an easier time than users trying to protect their funds, and he adds;
“As a fund holder, you have to protect every point. If you leave any opening, someone will enter. As a hacker, this is easier. You ignore the secure system and find a way. You just have to find a way in, that’s it.”
Therefore, the manager emphasized that those working in the security field have a much harder time compared to hackers and exploiters.
