In a surprising move, @ocean_mining, a prominent mining pool, has implemented a controversial policy to censor Whirlpool coinjoin transactions and BIP47 notification transactions as of December 6, 2023. The decision, attributed to operators @jack and @LukeDashjr, has raised concerns and garnered criticism from the cryptocurrency community.
The renowned Samourai Wallet, a leading privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet provider, took to Twitter to express their disappointment, stating that this action by the operators far exceeds any previous hostile measures observed in the industry.
The controversy escalated when Luke Dashjr claimed that Whirlpool transactions were "bugged" and generated non-standard transactions due to a 46-byte OP_RETURN present in Whirlpool Tx0 transactions. Samourai Wallet vehemently denied this assertion, insisting that Luke Dashjr was aware of the truth, given that the OP_RETURN limit had been set at 80 bytes since Bitcoin Core version 0.12.
Further complicating the issue, it was revealed that Luke Dashjr runs a fork of Core called Knots, where he has defined the OP_RETURN limit at 42 bytes. Samourai Wallet argued that while Luke Dashjr is entitled to set his own limits in his fork, labeling Whirlpool transactions as non-standard based on values specific to his niche fork is both inaccurate and deceitful.
Samourai Wallet defended Whirlpool users, asserting that they have been creating, broadcasting, and relaying standard Bitcoin transactions since the release of Whirlpool in late 2018 without encountering any issues. The wallet provider highlighted that miners have consistently relayed and mined these transactions in blocks without complications.
Critics argue that Ocean Mining's decision to exclude privacy-enhancing transactions sets a concerning precedent, creating a slippery slope in the realm of cryptocurrency. Notably, Luke Dashjr has been previously accused of censoring transactions and deploying blacklists for transactions he deems as "sinful."
In response to the controversy, Samourai Wallet called on miners currently directing hashpower at Ocean to reconsider and shift their resources to another pool. The wallet provider emphasized the importance of the market making a clear stand against censorship of privacy-enhancing transactions.
Even amid a period of high miner fees, Samourai Wallet reported that Whirlpool has achieved all-time highs, surpassing 9,700 BTC. Users, according to the wallet provider, have determined that the cost of miner fees is justified by the privacy improvements they gain from utilizing Whirlpool. The situation is evolving, and the cryptocurrency community continues to watch closely as discussions unfold around privacy, censorship, and the implications for the broader ecosystem.
.webp)