Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, warns that Layer 2 networks should only move to fully decentralisation if the underlying proof system is highly reliable.
In a May 5 post shared on X (formerly Twitter), Buterin emphasized that progress towards “stage 2” decentralization needs to involve robust technical protection measures to avoid the introduction of unnecessary risks.
He said:
“Remind me that Stage 2 is not the only thing that matters to security. The quality of the underlying proof system is also important.”
He explained that the level of decentralisation of a network should be tailored to the maturity and reliability of its proof system. Buterin argued that if the system does not encounter errors, decentralization can cause more harm than good.
Buterin’s remarks come in response to the proposal of Daniel Wang, founder of The Looping Foundation. He proposed a new label for “stage 2 batlet” to highlight a Layer 2 solution that withstands actual stress conditions.
According to Wang, such labels indicate that the code has undergone rigorous testing and is more reliable in a live environment. He added:
“If your current code and configuration are live on Ethereum Mainnet for over six months and you have secured over $100 million on TVL, the rollup is #BattleTESTEST.
Butaline shows why the proof system is important
Buterin acknowledges Wang’s position and presents a risk model in which each Security Council member has an independent possibility of breakdowns.
This includes potential security issues, such as signing incorrect data, or living issues that result in inability to sign or unwilling to sign the data.
Buterin acknowledged that the model is incomplete due to actual vulnerabilities such as collusion and coordinated hacking, also known as common mode failures.
With this in mind, he pointed out that moving to stage 2 earlier than the model might be a better option, especially as the quality of the proof system improves.
Meanwhile, Buterin also proposed using a multisignature (MultiSIG) setup with several independent systems to reduce the risk of a single point of failure in the certification system.
He argued that the probability of a protocol failure is closely linked to the strength of its proof mechanism, especially at the advanced security stage.
The co-founder of Ethereum warned that deploying a Stage 2 model with a weak Stage 0 level proof system could be the worst case scenario.