by Elise Hamdon
This is our fortnightly community and communications update; last week’s engineering update is available here.
A security announcement was posted in the forum regarding a bug in the Zcashd wallet, which could result in Sprout z-addresses displaying an incorrect balance. Sapling z-addresses are not impacted by this issue. This would occur if someone sending funds to a Sprout z-address intentionally sent a different amount in the note commitment of a Sprout output than the value provided in the ciphertext (the encrypted message from the sender).
A code fix for the wallet has been written and the integration into an official Zcash release is targeted for our next release (version 2.0.4, expected March 25th).
From the blog
The Electric Coin Company has developed consensus code that preserves the Zcash monetary base in the event of a counterfeiting compromise within Zcash’s shielded supply. We intend to deploy this as a backwards compatible consensus rule in the Zcashd v2.0.5 release, scheduled for the beginning of May. We believe this new rule does not materially affect users and is low-risk to deploy. Read more about turnstile enforcement against counterfeiting, including tracking shielded value pools and codifying the existing policy.
Jack Gavigan, Product and Regulatory Relations, outlined why Zcash is Compatible with AML/CFT Regulation: “From an AML/CFT perspective, Zcash is similar in nature to cash. The techniques and processes that have been honed and perfected over decades to detect and discourage the use of cash for money laundering and terrorist financing can be applied to Zcash, including customer due-diligence checks, record-keeping, and making Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) when appropriate.”
Events
Is social income a thought experiment? Join Zooko at RadicalxChange on March 23rd as he takes the stage to explore this compelling topic.
Joseph Van Geffen, Design Lead, is presenting “The design of the Zcash Reference Wallet,” on March 26th at the Bay Area Zcash Users meetup.Register to attend, limited seating.
Hello Japan! Don’t miss Zcash Japan’s First Meetup featuring Zooko and Josh Swihart in Tokyo on March 26th. Register in advance, seating is limited.
Calling all Zcash enthusiasts in Singapore! On March 28th, Dystopia Labs Singapore is hosting Zooko and Josh Swihart at the National University of Singapore for an “Intro to Zcash” followed by Q&A. Advanced registration is required, details available here.
KryptoSeoul is hosting “An Evening with Zooko Wilcox, Founder of Zcash” on April 4th at the Korbit Lounge in Seoul, Korea. Details and registration information.
Mark your calendar! Zcon1 will take place June 22–24 in Split, Croatia. Applications are open!
Spotlight
eToro released a market research report which concluded, “Zcash is … reinventing the way people think about privacy coins. Many authorities have shunned anonymous cryptocurrencies even though personal privacy is an ideal cherished by many. By using the power of the blockchain and zero knowledge proofs, Zcash brings personal privacy to online transactions, changing the perception of Internet money.
