Validator Roles & Security Controls

Validators are independent, trusted entities that form a critical security layer for the minting and burning processes within the MinterGateway. Their responsibilities and powers include:

Core Responsibilities

• Collateral Verification: Validators verify Minters' offchain collateral and provide cryptographic signatures for updateCollateral transactions. These signatures attest to the value and existence of the assets backing $M.
• Timestamping: Signatures from Validators must include a secure timestamp to prevent replay attacks and ensure the freshness of collateral data.
• Enabling Offchain-Onchain Bridge: Validators act as the crucial link ensuring the onchain representation of collateral accurately reflects the state of offchain assets.

Security Controls & Emergency Powers

Validators are empowered with specific functions to intervene and protect the protocol:

1. Cancel Mint Proposal: If Validators deem a pending mint proposal to be suspicious, invalid, or potentially harmful to the protocol, they can cancel it before execution:

   function cancelMint(address minter, uint256 mintId) external onlyApprovedValidator;

   This action deletes the mint proposal, preventing the Minter from executing it.

2. Freeze Minter: Validators can temporarily suspend a Minter's ability to mint new $M tokens:

   function freezeMinter(address minter) external onlyApprovedValidator returns (uint40 frozenUntil_);

   This "freezes" the Minter for a duration specified by the governance parameter MINTER_FREEZE_TIME. A frozen Minter can still burn $M and update collateral but cannot propose or execute new mints until the freeze period expires.

These controls allow Validators to act as a rapid response mechanism against potential threats or misbehavior related to $M issuance.