Facing criticism from the crypto community, Ledger has delayed the launch of Ledger Recover. The Ledger chairman, Gauthier, said that he had learnt a lesson regarding communication. He accepted that they had miscommunicated on the launch of this product.
He continued that it was never in their mind to surprise people. If by any chance this had happened, then they apologize for the miscommunication. His statement of not releasing any codebase till the work is not complete has raised many questions.
So later on, he stated that the firm would be accelerating its plan to open source code as soon as it is auditable. It will start with the basic things of its operating system and Ledger Recover.
Ledger Recover Would Become Open Source
Charles Guillemet, the chief technology officer of Ledger, clarifies that the whitepaper of Ledger Recover will become open source in the coming days. They would also provide a technical blog post that explains the principles and workings of Recover.
This will give the understanding and guarantee of work by Ledger Recover.
He added that this launch holds importance for Ledger and also for the community. This is the reason to decide on this open-source process.
After revealing its plan on May 16, to launch Ledger Recover, Ledger found itself in a nightmare. The firm later updated that those who lost the private seed phrase will get it back through an optional feature.
After announcing the launch of Ledger Recover, the firm faced much opposition from the crypto community because it will open the backdoor, which may cause fraud and misuse.
Questions of Security Arise
The opposition led the Ledger Recover on hold because the controversy has raised many questions regarding security. Regarding this, the firm came up with an open-source roadmap.
This will clear the doubts openly by declaring the procedures. Some of the portions of the codebase, such as secure element chips, can not be made open source.
Ledger hardware wallets make use of these chips to enhance industry-leading security. These chips are also used in passports and credit cards. This chip not only saves your data but also has measures implemented to secure it against attacks.
The Ledger Recover is a private key recovery service that will allow the backup of seed phrases. This seed phrase can be recovered by tying it to personal identity through three different custodians. This service will be optional, and will be available at the cost of $9.99 per month.
Although the Ledger is adamant to root for their customers, says Gauthier, he doesn’t know what they would do in case of subpoena. Finally, he said if anyone has reason to doubt, they should not use the service.
But all this leads to opposition and has made Ledger put on hold, the recovery service. However, they have received a lesson on how to work with the crypto community for future decisions.
Nancy J. Allen is a crypto enthusiast and believes that cryptocurrencies inspire people to be their own banks and step aside from traditional monetary exchange systems. She is also intrigued by blockchain technology and its functioning.
Source: https://www.thecoinrepublic.com/2023/05/24/battling-ledger-recover-paused-declares-to-open-source-code/