A company uses a blockchain ledger to record supply chain transactions. An auditor is assessing the risk of '51% attacks'. What is the primary implication of a successful 51% attack on a blockchain?

Answer options:

The attacker can steal funds from any wallet on the network.

The attacker can reverse their own transactions and double-spend coins/tokens.

The attacker can decrypt all historical data on the blockchain.

The attacker can permanently shut down the internet.

How to approach this question

Understand Blockchain consensus. If you control 51%, you control the 'truth' of the ledger's recent history.

Full Answer

B.The attacker can reverse their own transactions and double-spend coins/tokens.✓ Correct

The attacker can reverse their own transactions and double-spend coins/tokens.

A 51% attack allows an entity to control the consensus mechanism, enabling them to exclude new transactions or reverse their own recent transactions, leading to double-spending.

Common mistakes

Thinking a 51% attack allows stealing everyone's money (it doesn't break cryptography/keys).

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