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- Bitcoin witnessed a large number of unconfirmed transactions
- Users avoid using Lightning Network due to its technicality.
Bitcoin is currently selling at an all-time of over $13,000. However, its transaction block fee has risen to $10.77, which places the median fee at $6.43.
Many crypto enthusiasts have also begun to complain about the high number of unconfirmed transactions (mempool) on the coin platform, which currently stands at over 100,000 transactions.
Not only that, there is also a litany of complaints about the high transaction fees that are incurred in the process of sending and confirming a transaction.
As it stands now, BTC mempool is at a record high. In 2017 when it was as high as this, Bitcoin had seen a rise in its price, which increased unconfirmed transactions and transaction fees.
Bitcoin transactions have continued to be on-chain despite its increased transaction fees and its avalanche of unconfirmed transactions.
Many believed that the Bitcoin Layer 2 network -Lightning Network (LN)- would solve this issue. Users, instead, have complained about the LN software of being too technical and challenging for an average user.
Many of the applications that the software would run on are custodial. Also, many vulnerabilities have been discovered in the network too.
Bitcoin’s Layer 2 network vulnerabilities
Some crypto enthusiasts are puncturing the belief that LN could be the solution to Bitcoin’s unconfirmed transactions.
The LN protocol is open to attack vectors, which makes it very vulnerable.
Joost Jäger -one of the engineers working on the Lightning network- had tweeted about one such attack vectors. He said that script kids could carry out attacks on the new 5 BTC channels with no stress and at a cheap cost.
He pointed out that the possibility of using the “griefing attack” to attack the channels with little stress will discourage the use of LN.
