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- Zcash faces renewed scrutiny after the patched Orchard flaw raised hidden risk concerns.
- Qureshi said fake ZEC would face public checks before reaching major crypto exchanges.
- Wei Dai warned hidden transfers and ZEC short positions could still create market risks.
Zcash faces new scrutiny after a patched Orchard Pool flaw renewed concern over possible hidden risks. The dispute now centers on how far the vulnerability could have spread. Investors, developers, and privacy advocates are weighing the threat.
Dragonfly partner Haseeb Qureshi said the market may be treating the bug as a larger short-term danger than the evidence supports. He also said Dragonfly continues to hold ZEC. His comments came as the community debated what the flaw may have allowed before developers fixed it.
Zcash Counterfeit Risk Debate Focuses on Orchard Pool
Qureshi said the key issue was not only the seriousness of the bug. He focused instead on where the impact would likely have remained. According to him, the flaw could have allowed counterfeit ZEC inside the Orchard shielded pool.
He maintained that fake coins would have a big hurdle to overcome before they could be introduced to mainstream markets. To use major exchanges, an attacker would most likely have to convert shielded ZEC into transparent ZEC. This move might reveal inflated supply, as transparent ZEC can be publicly checked.
This reduced the direct risk for many exchange users and traders, Qureshi said. He placed the main exposure on users who kept funds inside the shielded pool while the bug existed. This is different from the perspective of other privacy advocates.
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He also mentioned some recent network data following the disclosure. The shielded pool share of supply dropped from 31 per cent to 30 per cent over 48 hours, he said. The decline was a small one, and not a clear indication of panic, said Qureshi.
Wei Dai Warns Zcash Bug Could Hide Deeper Market Risks
This debate was followed by a contrary assessment from Zcash creator Wei Dai. Dai said an attacker may not have needed to empty the Orchard Pool. He claimed that the fake coins could have remained in the protected system for longer.
In that case the fake ZEC would have trickled through private transactions. Dai said the shielded pool itself could have helped conceal such movement. Such a concern keeps the spotlight on activities that may not be revealed by regular public oversight.
Dai also highlighted a market risk associated with ZEC derivatives. He said someone who found the flaw early could have opened a large short position before public disclosure. Since ZEC is traded on a liquid perpetual futures market, this trader might have been able to take advantage of the subsequent price reaction.
The vulnerability fix has thus left two competing visions. Qureshi sees limited direct exposure for many market users based on visible exit data. Dai’s warning highlights potential hidden movement and potential off-chain profit prior to the bug going public.
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