Bitcoin Developers Reveal Roadmap for 'Dandelion' Privacy Project

The developers behind a bitcoin privacy solution called Dandelion have unveiled a new roadmap that addresses previously discovered code issues.

Originally launched in January, Dandelion modifies the bitcoin network's payment protocol to conceal the original IP address behind a transaction. It does this by breaking that transaction into two parts, nicknamed the "stem" and the "fluff." The "stem" is the single transaction itself, while the "fluff" is an obfuscation method that occurs after the fact.

The proposal was originally opened up for scrutiny as a Bitcoin Improvement Protocol (BIP) back in June, but issues were discovered that ultimately delayed the project. As pointed out by Bitcoin Core contributor Greg Maxwell, various faults in Dandelion could lead to its deanonymization over time.

Now, the Dandelion team has come forward to present a strategy for addressing those problems.

An improved Dandelion BIP may still be a while away, though, according to those involved.

"We have not yet completed a reference implementation, so this update does not include a new BIP. Instead, we’re just outlining the steps we plan to take before an updated BIP," one of the developers, Giulia Fanti, said in an email.

Dandelion seed image via Shutterstock