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SoK: Digital Signatures and Taproot Transactions in Bitcoin

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Information Systems Security (ICISS 2023)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNCS,volume 14424))

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Abstract

Bitcoin has emerged as one of the most disruptive innovations since the advent of the internet. Its core principle of decentralization has not only revolutionized the way transactions are made but also paved the way for development of an entirely new blockchain industry. Its security is achieved through the implementation of cryptographic constructs based on elliptic curve cryptography. In this paper, we delve into use of digital signatures in Bitcoin. We provide an overview of Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm (ECDSA) and the recently adopted Schnorr signatures. Furthermore, we discuss Taproot, a soft fork introduced in Bitcoin, which enhances Bitcoin’s versatility for complex applications. With Taproot, multiparty transactions can be designed with greater privacy for all parties involved, as well as for the underlying contracts. This paper offers a comprehensive review of both the ECDSA and Schnorr signature schemes, shedding light on their scripting capabilities within the Bitcoin ecosystem.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Malaviya National Institute of Technology, Jaipur, 302017, India

    Anubha Jain & Emmanuel S. Pilli

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  1. Anubha Jain
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  2. Emmanuel S. Pilli
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Correspondence to Anubha Jain .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Griffith University, Gold Coast, QLD, Australia

    Vallipuram Muthukkumarasamy

  2. Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), Bangalore, India

    Sithu D. Sudarsan

  3. Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai, India

    Rudrapatna K. Shyamasundar

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Jain, A., Pilli, E.S. (2023). SoK: Digital Signatures and Taproot Transactions in Bitcoin. In: Muthukkumarasamy, V., Sudarsan, S.D., Shyamasundar, R.K. (eds) Information Systems Security. ICISS 2023. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 14424. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-49099-6_22

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-49099-6_22

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-49098-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-49099-6

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