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Threat model (summary)

This page summarizes the main security threats across the Catalyst ecosystem and points to canonical threat model docs.

Canonical references:

  • Node threat model: catalyst-node-rust/docs/security-threat-model.md
  • Faucet security checklist + secret handling: Faucet/catalyst-faucet-infra/security/

High-level threats​

  • Key compromise: wallet keys, operator keys, faucet hot wallet keys
  • RPC abuse: rate limiting, spam, denial of service
  • Supply-chain risk: compromised dependencies or build artifacts
  • Operator mistakes: wrong chain identity, unsafe RPC exposure, skipping backups
  • Indexing trust: explorers/indexers can lag or lie; treat them as convenience layers

Mitigation themes​

  • Domain separation: tooling should use catalyst_getTxDomain to avoid signing on the wrong chain.
  • Least privilege: separate roles (validator, RPC node, explorer indexer, faucet).
  • Rate limiting: server-side limits (RPC code -32029) plus client backoff.
  • Backups + rollback: treat upgrades as stateful changes; always snapshot before change.