Validators play a pivotal role in decentralized Oracle networks such as Chronicle Protocol. They are independent entities that gather data from predetermined sources and submit it to the protocol, ensuring its integrity and reliability.
In decentralized Oracle networks, this distribution of validators keeps the network, and therefore the data it communicates, secure. How? Let’s take price data as an example.
If the goal is to discover the latest value of BTC/USD, no single validator can be trusted to submit that value. This would be centralized, and if that validator were wrong or acting maliciously (hacked), then the Oracle protocol would have failed, which could result in the loss of a lot of money (TVL).
The same is true if you’re able to corrupt over 51% of the validators. This ‘super majority’ would be enough to manipulate the consensus value the Oracle reports to end users. This is why it is important to:
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Have a larger number of independent Validators
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Ensure they are distributed geographically
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Are disincentivized to collude
Beware: There are Oracle networks that forgo this security and resilience, controlling the majority of their own validator nodes in favor of lower operating costs and quicker deployment times. These Oracle networks do not call themselves 'decentralized' but they are also not upfront about this trade off.
In summary, a decentralized Oracle network protects its users. The network constructors, like Chronicle, will never have the power to manipulate the data the Oracle reports and attack the DeFi protocols they are ultimately there to enable and protect (Not your keys, not your TVL).
The ultimate Validator network
The decentralized validator network is well-proven as a tool for security and resilience, having secured up to $22b for MakerDAO since 2017. However, how can we improve on this?
Enter, proof of reputation. At Chronicle, our goal is to have a validator network made up of some of the most trusted, and reputable brands in DeFi and DeFi infrastructure.
Each and every validator on the Chronicle Oracle network has significant ‘skin in the game’. They are established protocols or entities with proven operational security, and, in most cases, serve tens of thousands of blockchain users every day. The trust many have in these brands is implicit in Chronicle. Albeit, that trust is superfluous in Chronicle as all the data is transparent & verifiable (read about that here).
These are entities such as Etherscan, Gitcoin, Gnosis, MakerDAO, DeFi Saver, and Infura. Together with a group of verified non-branded Validators, Chronicle is proud to have the largest group of signers of any blockchain Oracle, delivering unbeatably robust and secure data.
We welcome one more…
We are delighted to report that Chronicle’s decentralized Oracle network has just grown significantly stronger with the addition of ETHGlobal as a validator.
The announcement took place at ETHGlobal Brussels and marks the first new validator to join the network since Chronicle officially spun out of MakerDAO and soft-launched the network to the public in September 2023.
ETHGlobal is renowned as a leading light in the ecosystem. Over the past several years, it has forged and supported the largest community of blockchain developers and entrepreneurs and hosted over 100 global hackathons.
Together we are aligned on a mission to raise the standard for blockchain Oracles and contribute to a verifiably decentralized future.
