Monero has launched the Fluorine Fermi upgrade to remove nodes that compromise user privacy.

Monero's "Fluorine Fermi" Upgrade

Monero has released a significant upgrade, CLI v0.18.4.3 “Fluorine Fermi,” designed to strengthen user protection and counter “spy nodes.” These malicious nodes attempt to link IP addresses with transactions, compromising the blockchain's privacy guarantees. The update is highly recommended by the Monero community due to the persistent threat these nodes pose.

Privacy Enhancements and Security Measures

Monero’s privacy is maintained through several technologies, including stealth addresses, ring signatures, and Ring Confidential Transactions. Dandelion++ is also promoted to prevent IP address linking. The “Fluorine Fermi” update introduces an improved peer selection algorithm to avoid connections to clusters of suspicious IP addresses and mitigate the issue of non-standard nodes.

Recent Network Developments

The Qubic mining pool recently claimed control of over 51% of Monero’s hashrate, a level that could theoretically enable chain rewriting or transaction censorship. After facing challenges from a DDoS attack, Qubic restored its power and stated its intention to dominate mining operations and restrict competitor activity. The XMR token has experienced recent price fluctuations following these events.