Monero Developers Explore 'Publish or Perish' Strategy to Counter Mining Attacks

In response to recent selfish mining tactics employed by a prominent mining pool, Monero's core contributors are actively discussing potential solutions to fortify the network against such challenges. The "Publish or Perish" proposal, introduced by a developer known as tevador, has gained significant traction among Monero supporters as a potential countermeasure.

This proposal, currently under consideration as issue #144 in the Monero Research Lab's GitHub repository, draws inspiration from a 2017 paper titled "Publish or Perish: A Backward-Compatible Defense Against Selfish Mining in Bitcoin" by Ren Zhang. The strategy aims to render selfish mining unprofitable and less disruptive for actors controlling less than 51% of the network's hashrate, thereby promoting overall stability.

An expert in the field, speaking exclusively to our publication, emphasized the importance of maintaining a secure and equitable mining process for Monero's continued resilience. The expert noted, "With a single entity now wielding approximately 33% of the hashrate, selfish mining poses a genuine threat. This not only impacts the earnings of honest miners but also has the potential to erode trust in the network."

The expert further elaborated on the significance of the new proposals: "Initiatives like Publish or Perish and Reward Splitting represent crucial steps forward. These measures significantly reduce the profitability of selfish mining while safeguarding the revenue streams of honest participants. Whether implemented through a soft fork, hard fork, or coordinated mining strategies, these proposals are fundamentally about preserving Monero's reliability and bolstering the network's defenses against potential attacks."

Understanding the Publish or Perish Proposal

Tevador's proposal comprises two distinct components:

1. A soft fork: This backward-compatible upgrade would require approval from the majority of honest miners.
2. A hard fork: This more complex, non-backward-compatible upgrade would necessitate greater coordination and could potentially lead to a blockchain split.

The soft fork introduces the concept of "late blocks," imposing penalties on miners who delay broadcasting their mined blocks. This directly addresses a key aspect of selfish mining strategies, which involve mining multiple blocks covertly and releasing them simultaneously to reorganize the chain and invalidate competitors' blocks.

According to tevador, this approach would mitigate smaller-scale attacks from entities controlling less than 51% of the network's hashrate, necessitating at least three-block-deep reorganizations. However, larger-scale selfish mining operations might still be feasible, albeit less profitable.

The hard fork proposal extends the Publish or Perish concept by incorporating Reward Splitting. This addition aims to eliminate economic incentives for selfish mining unless an attacker can consistently outpace the honest network by at least 20 blocks. Reward Splitting introduces significant consensus changes to Monero, fundamentally altering reward distribution to promote fairness and network stability.

During a recent open meeting, Monero Research Lab developers discussed these proposals alongside other potential solutions. One controversial suggestion involved transforming Monero into a hybrid chain by adding a proof-of-stake finality layer. However, this idea faced criticism due to concerns about early distribution favoring a small group of adopters.

Monero (XMR) Market Analysis

As of the latest data, Monero (XMR) is trading just below $260 per coin, fluctuating within a range of $260 to $285. The privacy-focused cryptocurrency has experienced a decline of approximately 20% from its July 2025 trading range, coinciding with the onset of selfish mining attacks.

Technical analysis of the daily chart indicates a short-term downtrend for XMR against the US dollar, with the price struggling to break above the 50-day exponential moving average, a key technical indicator for cryptocurrencies.

The ongoing discussions surrounding mitigation strategies for selfish mining attacks represent a critical juncture for Monero. A successful implementation of these proposals could potentially alleviate uncertainty and provide support for XMR's price recovery. Conversely, continued network disruptions might exert further downward pressure on the asset's value.

Interestingly, recent data shows that Google searches for "privacy coins" have reached unprecedented levels, potentially signaling growing interest in privacy-focused cryptocurrencies like Monero.