- Ethereum launched Clear Signing, replacing unreadable hex data with plain language approvals.
- Blind signing contributed to the $1.4 billion Bybit hack and billions in ecosystem losses.
- Ledger, Trezor, MetaMask, WalletConnect, and Fireblocks are already integrating the standard.
The Ethereum Foundation on Tuesday launched Clear Signing, an open standard designed to replace unreadable transaction data with plain language descriptions before users approve on-chain activity.
The foundation called blind signing a structural flaw that has contributed to billions of dollars in ecosystem losses, including last year’s $1.4 billion Bybit hack. The standard is now live and being integrated by Ledger, Trezor, MetaMask, WalletConnect, and Fireblocks, among others.
How It Works
Currently, approving an Ethereum transaction often means confirming a string of machine-readable hex code that most users cannot interpret. Clear Signing replaces that with a plain language explanation of exactly what a transaction will do before the user confirms it.
The standard introduces three core components:
- ERC-7730: an open format for human-readable transaction descriptions
- A neutral public registry where contributors can submit and update descriptors
- ERC-8176: an attestation framework allowing independent auditors to verify descriptor accuracy
The Ethereum Foundation’s Trillion Dollar Security Initiative will host the registry infrastructure. Ledger, which pioneered the original ERC-7730 standard, is credited with initiating the work.
Why It Was Needed
Blind signing has been the final exploit point in some of crypto’s largest thefts. The Bybit hack worked by compromising a third-party service and manipulating transaction signatures that users approved without being able to read them properly. North Korean state-backed hackers have stolen over $7 billion in crypto since 2009, with a significant share coming from manipulated transaction approvals.
Trezor chief technology officer Tomáš Sušánka said attackers have relentlessly exploited the absence of a tool capable of distinguishing malicious smart contracts from legitimate ones. Users have been “unknowingly signing them and losing everything,” he said. Clear Signing directly addresses that by making transactions human-readable before approval.
What Changes
Wallet interfaces, including hardware device confirmation screens and browser extension approval windows, will begin displaying plain language summaries of transaction activity instead of technical data. The standard works across both existing and new Ethereum applications without requiring changes to underlying protocols.
The Ethereum Foundation said its goal is to make Clear Signing the default across the ecosystem, encouraging wallet developers to integrate support, application developers to provide accurate descriptors, and security auditors to review and attest to their correctness.
Related: Ethereum Foundation Investigators Expose 100 Secret DPRK IT Workers
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