Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

General Questions

What is ΞTHΛURΛ?

ΞTHΛURΛ is an implementation of ERC-4337 Account Abstraction that uses P-256/secp256r1 signatures instead of the traditional secp256k1. This enables users to control their Ethereum accounts using WebAuthn/Passkeys (Touch ID, Face ID, Windows Hello, etc.).

Why P-256 instead of secp256k1?

P-256 (secp256r1) is widely supported by hardware security modules, secure enclaves, and WebAuthn. This allows users to:

Use biometric authentication (Touch ID, Face ID)
Leverage hardware security (Secure Enclave, TPM)
Avoid managing private keys manually
Use the same keys across multiple platforms

What is EIP-7951?

EIP-7951 introduces a precompile at address 0x0100 for verifying P-256 signatures. This makes verification much cheaper (~6,900 gas) compared to Solidity implementation (~330,000 gas).

Is this production-ready?

No. This is experimental software that has not been audited. Do not use with real funds on mainnet.

Technical Questions

Which networks support EIP-7951?

Currently:

✅ Sepolia testnet (after Fusaka upgrade)
⏳ Mainnet (planned for future upgrade)
❌ Other networks (check individually)

How does signature verification work?

User signs with passkey (P-256 ECDSA)
Frontend decodes DER signature to r,s components
Contract computes messageHash = SHA256(userOpHash)
Contract calls precompile at 0x0100 with (hash, r, s, qx, qy)
Precompile verifies signature and returns result

What's the difference between raw P-256 and WebAuthn mode?

Raw P-256 mode (used in this implementation):

Sign SHA256(userOpHash) directly
Simpler, more gas-efficient
Works with any P-256 signer

WebAuthn mode:

Sign authenticatorData || SHA256(clientDataJSON)
More complex, requires parsing on-chain
Full WebAuthn compliance

Can I use this with MetaMask?

No, MetaMask uses secp256k1 keys. ΞTHΛURΛ accounts use P-256 keys from passkeys. However, you can:

Use MetaMask to deploy the factory
Use MetaMask as the owner address
Sign transactions with passkeys

How are account addresses determined?

Accounts are deployed using CREATE2, so addresses are deterministic:

address = CREATE2(
  factory,
  salt,
  keccak256(creationCode || abi.encode(entryPoint))
)

Same public key + salt = same address across all networks.

What happens if I lose my passkey?

ΞTHΛURΛ has multiple recovery options:

Option 1: Owner-initiated recovery (48 hours)

Login to Web3Auth from a new device
Propose a new passkey update
Wait 48 hours (timelock)
Execute the update
✅ Access restored

Option 2: Guardian-based recovery (24 hours, recommended)

Contact your guardians
Guardian initiates recovery with your new passkey
Other guardians approve (e.g., 2 out of 3)
Wait 24 hours (timelock)
Execute recovery
✅ Access restored

Important: If you still have access to your passkey, you can cancel any malicious recovery attempts!

What if I lose BOTH my passkey AND Web3Auth access?

This is why guardians are critical!

If you lose both:

Contact your guardians
Guardians initiate recovery
Multiple guardians approve (threshold required)
Wait 24 hours
Execute recovery
✅ Access restored

Without guardians: Funds may be permanently lost. Always set up guardians!

What if my Web3Auth account is hacked?

Your funds are safe! The new security model prevents this attack:

Attacker gains access to your social login
Attacker tries to propose a new passkey
⏰ 48-hour timelock starts
You receive notification
You cancel the proposal with your passkey signature
✅ Attack prevented, funds safe

Key protection: Owner address CANNOT execute transactions or immediately change passkey.

Can I have multiple passkeys for one account?

The current implementation supports one public key per account. However, you can:

Update the public key to a different passkey (with timelock)
Set up multiple guardians as backup
Use 2FA (passkey + owner signature) for high-value transactions

Security Questions

Is this secure?

ΞTHΛURΛ implements defense-in-depth security:

✅ Passkey-first: All transactions require passkey signature
✅ No owner bypass: Owner cannot execute transactions directly
✅ Timelock protection: 48-hour delay for administrative changes
✅ Guardian recovery: Decentralized social recovery
✅ P-256 cryptography: NIST standard, hardware-backed
✅ EIP-7951 precompile: Efficient signature verification
✅ ERC-4337 EntryPoint: Battle-tested account abstraction
⚠️ Not externally audited - use at your own risk

See SECURITY_MODEL.md for detailed security analysis.

What about signature malleability?

The implementation enforces s <= N/2 to prevent malleability attacks. This ensures each message has only one valid signature.

Can someone steal my passkey?

Passkeys are stored in your device's secure enclave and cannot be extracted. However:

Protect your device with a strong password
Enable biometric authentication
Keep your device updated
Don't jailbreak/root your device

What if the precompile has a bug?

If a critical bug is found in the precompile:

Network upgrade would be required to fix
Existing accounts would be affected
This is why auditing is crucial before mainnet

Guardian & Recovery Questions

What are guardians?

Guardians are trusted contacts who can help you recover your account if you lose access to your passkey. They are:

Decentralized: No single guardian can recover your account
Multi-sig: Requires threshold approval (e.g., 2 out of 3)
Time-locked: 24-hour delay before recovery executes
Cancellable: You can cancel malicious recovery attempts

How do I set up guardians?

Important: Your owner address (from Web3Auth) is automatically added as the first guardian when you create your account! This means you can initiate recovery immediately even before adding other guardians.

You already have 1 guardian: Your owner address (threshold = 1)
Choose 2+ additional trusted contacts: Family, friends, colleagues

Add guardians via passkey signature:

await account.addGuardian(guardianAddress)

Set threshold (e.g., 2 out of 3 total guardians):
```
await account.setGuardianThreshold(2)
```
Inform guardians: Let them know they're your guardians

Who should I choose as guardians?

Good guardian choices:

✅ Family members you trust
✅ Close friends
✅ Trusted colleagues
✅ People in different locations
✅ People with different risk profiles

Bad guardian choices:

❌ People you don't trust completely
❌ All guardians in same location
❌ People who might collude
❌ People who might lose access to their keys

What if a guardian's key is compromised?

Single guardian compromised:

✅ No problem! Threshold prevents single guardian attack
✅ Remove compromised guardian with passkey signature
✅ Add new guardian

Multiple guardians compromised:

⚠️ If threshold is met, they can initiate recovery
✅ You have 24 hours to cancel with passkey
✅ Monitor recovery requests closely

Can I remove guardians?

Yes! You can remove guardians anytime with passkey signature:

await account.removeGuardian(guardianAddress)

What's the recovery process?

Step 1: Guardian initiates recovery

await account.initiateRecovery(newQx, newQy, newOwner)

Step 2: Other guardians approve

await account.approveRecovery(requestNonce)

Step 3: Wait 24 hours (timelock)

Step 4: Execute recovery

await account.executeRecovery(requestNonce)

Step 5: Access restored!

Can I cancel a recovery request?

Yes! If you still have access to your passkey, you can cancel any recovery request:

await account.cancelRecovery(requestNonce)

This protects against malicious guardians.

Usage Questions

How do I create an account?

Open the frontend demo
Click "Create Passkey"
Authenticate with Touch ID/Face ID
Deploy account via factory
Fund the account with ETH

How do I send a transaction?

Enter target address and amount
Click "Send Transaction"
Sign with your passkey
Transaction is submitted as UserOperation

What are the gas costs?

Approximate costs:

Account deployment: ~300k gas
Transaction (with precompile): ~100k gas
Signature verification: ~6,900 gas

Can I use this on mobile?

Yes! WebAuthn works on:

iOS (Touch ID, Face ID)
Android (fingerprint, face unlock)
Desktop (Windows Hello, Touch ID)

Do I need to run a bundler?

For production use, yes. The bundler:

Collects UserOperations
Submits them to EntryPoint
Handles gas estimation
Manages mempool

For testing, you can submit UserOperations directly.

Can I sponsor gas for users?

Yes, by implementing a Paymaster contract. This allows:

Gasless transactions for users
Payment in ERC-20 tokens
Subscription models
Sponsored onboarding

Development Questions

How do I run tests?

# All tests
make test

# With gas report
make test-gas

# Specific test
forge test --match-test testFunctionName

# With verbosity
forge test -vvv

How do I deploy to testnet?

# Setup environment
cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env with your values

# Deploy
make deploy-sepolia

How do I add a new feature?

Write the contract code
Add tests
Update documentation
Submit a pull request

See CONTRIBUTING.md for details.

Can I use this with Hardhat?

The project uses Foundry, but you can:

Port contracts to Hardhat
Use Hardhat for deployment
Keep Foundry for testing

How do I verify contracts?

forge verify-contract \
  --chain-id 11155111 \
  --compiler-version v0.8.23 \
  <ADDRESS> \
  src/P256AccountFactory.sol:P256AccountFactory

Troubleshooting

"Precompile not available" error

You're on a network without EIP-7951 support. Use Sepolia testnet after Fusaka upgrade.

"WebAuthn not supported" error

Your browser doesn't support WebAuthn. Try:

Chrome/Edge (recommended)
Safari (iOS/macOS)
Firefox
Use HTTPS or localhost

"Signature verification failed" error

Check:

Signature format is correct (r || s, 64 bytes)
Public key matches the account
Message hash is computed correctly
DER decoding is correct

"Gas estimation failed" error

Ensure:

Account has sufficient balance
EntryPoint deposit is sufficient
Signature is valid
Target contract doesn't revert

Frontend won't connect

Verify:

RPC URL is correct
Network is Sepolia
Factory address is correct
Browser console for errors

Comparison Questions

ΞTHΛURΛ vs Traditional EOA?

Feature	ΞTHΛURΛ	EOA
Key management	Passkey	Private key
Signature	P-256	secp256k1
Gas cost	Higher	Lower
User experience	Better	Worse
Recovery	Possible	Difficult

ΞTHΛURΛ vs Safe (Gnosis Safe)?

Feature	ΞTHΛURΛ	Safe
Deployment	ERC-4337	Traditional
Signatures	P-256	secp256k1
Multi-sig	No (yet)	Yes
Modules	No	Yes
Maturity	Experimental	Production

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