Coinbase’s Base Applies Security First Mindset Ahead of Mainnet Launch

Coinbase’s developed Layer 2 network – Base – is preparing to launch the mainnet. Since going live on the testnet earlier this year, Base has already met 4 out of 5 criteria for the upcoming event with security being the highest priority in its goal of attracting 1 million upcoming developers and 1 billion on-chain users.

As such, the team in charge of protocol security has redoubled its efforts to improve base security and optimism over the past six months. Experts have not discovered any major flaws yet.

Al Qaeda’s security-first mentality

According to the blog postDevelopers have reviewed all pre-deployments and contracts for Optimism on both L1 and L2 for bugs and risks in the technology stack.

Techniques for “jamming” critical components such as the L2 bridge and sequencer were utilized as well as operation manuals were developed for various types of hazard scenarios as well as distress events.

The team also reviewed and audited the preparation of the main management and contracts for the base.

After the completion of these audits, no serious bugs were discovered by the more than 100 external security researchers hired for this purpose. This has boosted Base’s confidence in moving forward with the mainnet launch, the platform said in a statement.

The team is currently working to ensure that appropriate action is taken for any media or minor issues reported during the process.

“Our goal in all of our security work is to see around corners and degrade the effectiveness of these attacks. We’re proud of the work we’ve done to secure Base and although sometimes the best controls will fail, we will always learn and do better.”

Go ahead

Coinbase unveiled its Ethereum layer-2 network in February, which is being developed in collaboration with Optimism. The mainnet is scheduled to launch sometime in 2023. As part of the agreement, the cryptocurrency exchange has joined Optimism as a core developer on the open source OP Stack.

Going forward, Base has revealed the addition of an open source monitoring tool, dubbed Pessimism, which is designed to notify creators of any anomalies such as account balance irregularities, contract events, or discrepancies between L1 and L2 states.

Furthermore, the new tool will be put together with OP Labs’ existing monitoring tools, Coinbase’s native blockchain monitoring capabilities, as well as third-party tools for detecting malicious and out-of-pattern events.