论文标题
所有闪闪发光的不是比特币 - 揭示了BTC(IP)网络的集中性质
All that Glitters is not Bitcoin -- Unveiling the Centralized Nature of the BTC (IP) Network
论文作者
论文摘要
区块链通常由点对点(P2P)网络管理,为所谓的分布式分类帐(DLT)提供支持和底物,该分布式分类帐(DLT)是一个复制,共享和同步的数据结构,地理位置分布在多个节点上。比特币(BTC)区块链是迄今为止最著名的DLT,用于根据BTC数字货币记录同行之间的交易。在本文中,我们专注于BTC P2P网络的网络端,从纯粹基于网络测量的方法中分析其节点。我们提出了一个能够通过主动测量结果发现和跟踪BTC P2P网络的BTC轨道,并使用它来分析其主要属性。通过对BTC网络的多个快照的组合分析,以及通过在BTC网络和DLT上使用其他可公开可用的数据源,我们揭幕了BTC P2P网络,定位其主动节点,研究其性能,并在过去两年中跟踪网络的演变。除其他相关发现外,我们还表明,(i)BTC网络的规模在过去12个月中几乎保持恒定 - 自2018年初BTC价格下跌以来,(II)大多数BTC P2P网络都位于美国和欧盟国家,(III),(iii)尽管是西方网络,大多数是西方网络,大部分的采矿活动和相应的收入都由大型的中国控制。通过进一步分析BTC硬币在独立BTC实体之间的分布(即,单个BTC地址或BTC的单一地址或同一参与者控制的btc地址),我们还得出结论,(iv)BTC远非分散的和未经控制的系统,而不是全部循环的4.5%,所有循环均为4.5%的coul in 85%。
Blockchains are typically managed by peer-to-peer (P2P) networks providing the support and substrate to the so-called distributed ledger (DLT), a replicated, shared, and synchronized data structure, geographically spread across multiple nodes. The Bitcoin (BTC) blockchain is by far the most well known DLT, used to record transactions among peers, based on the BTC digital currency. In this paper, we focus on the network side of the BTC P2P network, analyzing its nodes from a purely network measurements-based approach. We present a BTC crawler able to discover and track the BTC P2P network through active measurements, and use it to analyze its main properties. Through the combined analysis of multiple snapshots of the BTC network as well as by using other publicly available data sources on the BTC network and DLT, we unveil the BTC P2P network, locate its active nodes, study their performance, and track the evolution of the network over the past two years. Among other relevant findings, we show that (i) the size of the BTC network has remained almost constant during the last 12 months - since the major BTC price drop in early 2018, (ii) most of the BTC P2P network resides in US and EU countries, and (iii) despite this western network locality, most of the mining activity and corresponding revenue is controlled by major mining pools located in China. By additionally analyzing the distribution of BTC coins among independent BTC entities (i.e., single BTC addresses or groups of BTC addresses controlled by the same actor), we also conclude that (iv) BTC is very far from being the decentralized and uncontrolled system it is so much advertised to be, with only 4.5% of all the BTC entities holding about 85% of all circulating BTC coins.