TL;DR
- ZKnox, backed by the Ethereum Foundation, aims to improve Ethereum’s security and efficiency through advanced cryptography and post-quantum solutions.
- The implementation of the Number Theoretic Transform (NTT) in Yul optimizes cryptographic signature verification, significantly reducing gas costs on Ethereum.
- ZKnox proposes including NTT as a precompile in Ethereum (EIP-7885) to further reduce gas costs and enable the adoption of multiple post-quantum cryptographic schemes.
ZKnox, a new initiative backed by the Ethereum Foundation, could be crucial in improving Ethereum’s security and efficiency through advanced cryptography.
This organization, which specializes in developing post-quantum solutions, aims to offer open-source tools that strengthen Ethereum’s infrastructure against the advancements in quantum computing. Its goal is to optimize the cryptographic signature verification capabilities using cutting-edge technologies.
Why is ZKnox Essential for Ethereum’s Future?
One of ZKnox’s main advances lies in the implementation of the Number Theoretic Transform (NTT), a fundamental component for many lattice-based cryptographic algorithms. The efficiency of this technique is crucial for verifying signatures in post-quantum systems, an area where it has significantly optimized gas usage on Ethereum. Through benchmark tests, they have demonstrated a remarkable reduction in gas costs, representing a substantial improvement in the efficiency of transactions using FALCON signatures, one of the most recognized algorithms in post-quantum cryptography.
The implementation of NTT in Yul, Ethereum’s low-level intermediate language, has allowed cryptographic operations to be much more cost-effective in terms of gas. This not only helps make post-quantum transactions more accessible, but also paves the way for the integration of new cryptographic technologies that could be fundamental for Ethereum as quantum computing becomes a real threat.
Gas Costs: An Almost Insurmountable Barrier
Despite these advances, ZKnox acknowledges that gas costs remain a major obstacle to the widespread adoption of post-quantum cryptography on Ethereum. Therefore, the organization has proposed including NTT as a precompile in Ethereum, which would further reduce gas costs and facilitate the adoption of multiple cryptographic schemes on the network. This measure, presented in the form of proposal EIP-7885, aims to improve Ethereum’s cryptographic agility and ensure that the network is prepared to face the challenges of the post-quantum era without compromising scalability or efficiency.
ZKnox also works in other areas, such as hardware security, and plans to continue driving research and development in cryptography to ensure Ethereum remains flexible and resilient in the face of future challenges
