The Ethereum Foundation launched the Trillion Dollar Security Initiative (1TS) in May 2025 as an ecosystem-wide effort to make Ethereum safer as more value and activity move on-chain. The Foundation said the goal is to improve security across wallets, applications, infrastructure, developer tooling and consensus.
The initiative came as Ethereum prepared for the Pectra upgrade, which activated on May 7, 2025. Pectra introduced changes including smart-account functionality through EIP-7702, a higher maximum effective validator balance and more blob capacity for rollups. DeFi Planet previously reported on the Pectra upgrade.
Security is bigger than smart contracts
The original announcement framed “trillion-dollar security” around a future in which individuals are comfortable storing more than $1,000 on-chain and institutions can trust a single contract or application with more than $1 trillion in value. That makes the program bigger than traditional smart-contract audits.
The Foundation’s first task was to map security risks across Ethereum’s technology stack, including wallet and user-interface security, smart-contract tooling, infrastructure, supply-chain risks, consensus, stake centralization and internet infrastructure. It then planned to prioritize fixes and longer-term investments based on that assessment.
That focus matters because major losses in crypto do not always begin with a flaw in Ethereum’s consensus layer. Compromised websites, unsafe wallet interactions, malicious dependencies and unclear transaction approvals can put users at risk even when the underlying blockchain continues operating normally.
The initiative also depends on collaboration with security researchers, wallet developers, infrastructure providers and other Ethereum participants. Its approach includes identifying vulnerabilities, improving security standards and supporting research that can address problems before they become large-scale incidents.
In August 2025, the Foundation said its second phase would initially focus on user-experience security, including wallet standards, key management and clearer transaction signing. This shifted the initiative from mapping Ethereum’s risks toward implementing specific improvements.
Also Read: Vitalik Buterin Rejects AI Doomsday Fears and Defends Crypto Security
1TS moves into practical security work
That work has continued in 2026. The Foundation’s Trillion Dollar Security initiative helped launch Clear Signing, an open standard intended to make transaction approvals easier for users to understand and reduce the risks associated with blind signing. The project brings together wallet developers, security firms and other ecosystem participants.
The initiative has also expanded into front-end security. In August 2026, the Foundation announced a grant supporting WEBCAT, a tool designed to let browsers verify that website code matches what developers published. The project is aimed at reducing the risk that a compromised wallet or application website serves altered code to users.
These developments show how Ethereum’s security strategy has improved from protecting blockchain consensus to protecting the full path between users and on-chain applications. That distinction will become increasingly important as Ethereum serves more institutional users, wallets and applications.
Enjoyed this? Bookmark DeFi Planet, explore related topics, and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and CoinMarketCap Community for seamless access to high-quality industry insights
Take control of your crypto portfolio with DEFI PLANET PRO, DeFi Planet’s suite of analytics tools.
