Security News > 2022 > August > Monero hard fork makes hackers' favorite coin even more private
Monero, the privacy-oriented decentralized cryptocurrency project, underwent a planned hard fork event on Saturday, introducing new features to boost its privacy and security.
Completed at block 2,688,888, the hard fork now features a larger ring size, an improved 'Bulletproofs' algorithm for faster transactions, a revamped multisig mechanism, and performance upgrades that reduce wallet sync times by 30-40%. This upgrade is a hard fork sitting on 0.18 'Fluorine Fermi', so the new version isn't backward compatible with older ones.
Monero is used by cryptocurrency investors who cherish their privacy and anonymity, but the coin is also used for illicit affairs.
Together with the recent law enforcement crack-down on the Tornado Cash mixing service, hackers may be drawn more towards blockchains like Monero that are built with anonymity in mind.
If law enforcement has struggled with getting a grasp on deciphering Monero illicit activity, then the struggle is about to become even more difficult with the latest upgrade.
Zero Knowledge proofs are gaining publicity with more projects underway using the technology, but Monero has incorporated this to create privacy preserving transactions for a very long time.