Cryptosat Partners Dfns Labs to Launch Space Wallet, Seeks to Secure Blockchain Transactions

Key Highlights

• Cryptosat and Dfns Labs have formed a partnership to introduce the world’s first “Space Wallet,” a secure transaction system that utilizes satellite-based threshold signatures.
• The Space Wallet utilizes satellite-based Trusted Execution Environments (TEE) and threshold signature schemes to ensure the security of sensitive and high-value transactions.

Cryptosat, a startup specializing in satellite-based Trusted Execution Environments (TEE), has announced today, a revolutionary partnership with Dfns Labs, the research arm of web3 wallet infrastructure and security firm Dfns, to introduce the world’s first “Space Wallet.”

This integration between Cryptosat and Dfns Labs represents a significant step forward in protecting the integrity and confidentiality of sensitive data within the realm of blockchain technology. The innovation aims to revolutionize transaction security in the blockchain industry by leveraging a threshold signature scheme with a satellite acting as a co-signer, ensuring protection against physical access-based attacks.

Space Wallet: A Unique Innovation to Secure Sensitive and High-Value Transactions

The Space Wallet, designed by Dfns Labs and hosted on a Cryptosat satellite in low-Earth orbit, provides an unparalleled level of security for sensitive and high-value transactions. By utilizing threshold signature schemes, which require multiple signers’ approval for a transaction to be confirmed, the Space Wallet eliminates the risk of a single point of failure. However, traditional schemes still face potential threats from sophisticated physical methods or administrative access to obtain private key shares stored by a signer. By placing one of the signers on a Cryptosat satellite, these attacks become virtually impossible, as the satellites remain completely inaccessible even to the most determined and well-funded hackers.

In addition to this, Cryptosat employs advanced monitoring techniques to detect any attempts to approach its satellites. Initially, transactions are conducted using the Flexible Round-Optimized Schnorr Threshold Signatures (FROST) protocol, developed by cryptographers Chelsea Komlo and Ian Goldberg, and implemented by Dfns Labs to accommodate resource-constrained satellites. While currently compatible with the  blockchain, support for additional blockchains is planned for the future.

According to the announcement, Dr. Yan Michalevsky, Co-founder of Cryptosat, revealed that he is thrilled on supporting Dfns in implementing their threshold signature scheme with Cryptosat’s satellites. He described the Space Wallet as an example of leveraging space as a physically-isolated environment, ideally suited for the heightened security required by institutional wallet solutions. Moreso, Dr. Jonathan Katz, Chief Scientist of Dfns, also praised the Space Wallet for offering an unprecedented level of security for threshold signatures and for showcasing the efficiency of deploying such schemes in resource-constrained environments.

To further enhance transaction security, Cryptosat ensures full auditability of all transactions. In the event of a transaction being spoofed through compromised ground-based infrastructure, the satellite’s immutable transaction audit ledger logs the incident, providing valuable data for tracking the responsible attacker. Moreover, Cryptosat’s satellites can enforce additional security measures, such as requiring confirmation for transactions exceeding a specific value.

Apparently, with the introduction of the Space Wallet, Cryptosat and Dfns Labs are paving the way for a new era of secure transactions in the blockchain industry. By harnessing the power of low-Earth orbit satellites and innovative threshold signature schemes, they are ensuring unprecedented levels of security, making physical access-based attacks virtually impossible.