MPC in Stavax Account
Last updated
Last updated
MPC, or Multi-Party Computation, is a cryptographic technique that enables multiple parties to collaboratively compute a function without revealing their individual data. This is particularly useful in scenarios where privacy is crucial, such as in financial transactions or data sharing.
In the context of cryptocurrency wallets, MPC enhances private key management by splitting the key into parts and storing these parts in different locations. This method addresses common issues found in traditional wallets, which usually require storing seed phase in a single location, leading to:
Security Risks: A single compromised key can result in the loss of all assets.
User Responsibility: Users must remember and protect the key’s storage location.
Irrecoverability: Losing the key means assets cannot be recovered.
The Stavax Account leverages Multi-Party Computation (MPC) technology at its core to deliver the MPC Wallet, offering a secure and user-friendly cryptographic key management system.
Our system utilizes a specific implementation of MPC called Threshold ECDSA, where the private key is divided into encrypted shards and distributed among different parties, such as computers, cloud servers, and mobile devices. To sign transactions or authenticate messages, multiple parties must collaborate to combine their shares into a digital signature.
Specifically, Stavax employs a 2-of-3 MPC scheme for private key management:
Share Sharding: The private key is split into 3 encrypted shards.
Share Distribution:
Shard 1: Stored by Stavax and verified through the user’s linked social account for added protection.
Shard 2: Stored on the user’s current personal device.
Shard 3: Encrypted and stored in a Recovery File on Google Drive, serving as a secure backup easily accessible to the user.
Reconstruction: To access your account or perform any on-chain transaction, the private key must be reconstructed. This reconstruction process requires at least 2 out of the 3 shards. This 2-of-3 threshold ensures that:
The requirement to have at least 2 shards makes it much harder for attackers, as they would need to compromise two separate and distinct systems to gain access.
If one shard is lost or compromised, the user can still recover their account using the other two shards.
Multi-Secured: Your private key is protected by two layers of security. First, it is divided into three shards, requiring at least two to reconstruct it, so one shard alone does not grant access. Second, each shard is encrypted with your password, meaning that even if an attacker obtains a shard, they cannot decrypt it without the password. These combined layers significantly reduce the risk of unauthorized access and provide robust protection for your private key.
Private: The three shards are stored in separate, secure locations: one on your personal device, one on your Google Drive (accessible only through your credentials), and one managed by Stavax. This distribution significantly boosts confidentiality, minimizes unauthorized access risks, and allows you to maintain control over your sensitive information.
User-Controlled: You control your assets by holding two out of three shards, allowing independent management of your private keys and enhancing security and trust.
Simple Recovery: Restore your account using any two shards, ensuring quick and easy access even if one shard is lost. This flexible recovery process simplifies account management and reduces complexity.
By adopting MPC technology, Stavax emerges as a reliable choice for users seeking a secure and user-friendly solution for managing their digital assets across multiple blockchains
