The Arbitrum DAO is considering a proposal to implement the BoLD protocol across Arbitrum One and Arbitrum Nova, aimed at enhancing the dispute resolution system and security measures.
The Importance of BoLD Protocol
If approved, this proposal will update the current dispute resolution system with a more effective and secure protocol. The BoLD integration is anticipated in February 2025. Currently, validators have a 6.4-day window to dispute assertions about the chain’s state. This system, while functional, is vulnerable to delay attacks, where bad actors dispute assertions to delay their confirmation. BoLD tackles this by introducing a fixed upper time bound for dispute resolution, which stops delay attacks and ensures timely assertion confirmations.
Transition to Permissionless Validation on Arbitrum One
With BoLD comes a major change: permissionless validation on Arbitrum One. Now, anyone can secure the network by validating transactions.
Impact on Arbitrum Nova
Arbitrum Nova will keep permissioned validation but add Infura’s validator for reliability.
Implementing the BoLD protocol could significantly enhance the security and decentralization of the Arbitrum network, improving dispute resolution and ensuring more reliable and efficient network operations.
